


Old Arrangements

by Zanrok



Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Drama, F/M, Family Drama, Fluff, High School, Humor, Romance, Sweet
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-14
Updated: 2018-03-23
Packaged: 2018-09-08 15:22:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 100,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8850115
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zanrok/pseuds/Zanrok
Summary: Judy and Nick’s senior year of Highschool might just get a little extra dose of drama when Nick’s parents send him to finish school in Bunnyburrow after another fight with prey kids from the local ranger scouts. And it might get even more complicated when and an old agreement made between their families during the hazy memories of their early childhood comes back with a vengeance.





	1. Prelude: Forgotten Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so I got attacked by another swarm of plot bunnies. If people say they like this I'll continue it, but it'll have a slower update rate than my other story. Also I don't have any snazzy cover image for this so if anyone's got any ideas feel free to pm me.
> 
> Disclaimer: NOOOoooo I Don't Want To! *soob* (sounds on person being dragged away weeping by WildeHopps Navy press gang)

Cover art by Ziegelzeig

* * *

 "You and I know that _both_ of our families need this deal!" the red fox said waving his arm in exasperation at the country farmer bunny sitting across from him.

The bunny was grinding his teeth so hard that the sound was audible, "Now see here, _fox_. You're in _my_ burrow right now. I won't have any of your kind telling me what _my_ family needs!"

The fox rubbed his paws against his temples trying to sooth away the headache that their long argument had caused. "Mr. Hopps, I don't like this anymore than you do, frankly I wish I'd never had to talk to a stuck up country bumpkin bunny like yourself." The rabbit across from him seemed ready to shout but the fox continued right over him, "But, this isn't about what you or I want. My grocery store _needs_ to find some sort of advantage over that damn supermart chain in Zootopia, or it's going to put us out of business. Your farm is nearly bankrupt because you refused to sell out to that damned monopoly and now they won't buy your produce. You need to find someone to sell your supplies to and I need to find a supplier. That road side stand isn't going to support your family. It simply can't sell enough of your produce. My store in Zootopia _can_."

Mr. Hopps jumped off the couch and started pacing back and forth. He wanted to yell and shout at the damned fox sitting across from him, but Mr. Wilde was right. They were both over a barrel and they both knew it.

"How the hell can I trust some shifty fox to not stab me in the back?" Mr. Hopps didn't realize that he'd spoken that aloud until he heard Mr. Wilde's response.

"How the hell can I trust some stuck up rabbit to not rip me off?"

They glared at each other for another minute, neither willing to give any ground.

Mr. Hopps finally broke the stare; he gestured around him at the house they were in. "You see this _fox_ , this house, this land, they've been in my family for 14 generations, it's where I grew up, It's where I started my own family. If I make this deal with you and you don't hold up to your end of the bargain, I'll lose everything! Not just the house and the land itself, but the house that my _family_ lives in! The land that provides for my _family_! If I lose this then my _family_ are the ones that will suffer! So, how can you sit there and tell me that I can place the _safety_ , the _future_ of my _family_ in your _claws_!"

Mr. Wilde was now on his feet, anger just as apparent on his face as the rabbit's across from him.

"You don't think I have a _family_ to protect?! A _family_ to provide for? Do you think I like putting my _family's_ future in the hands of some rabbit that would probably like nothing more than to see us out homeless on the street?!"

The two stood not a foot apart now glaring at each other, the rabbit with paws fisted and foot thumping angrily and the fox letting out a low growl.

There was a set of happy and terrified squeals from the kitchen down the hall before two small shapes came running out. The small gray and red blurs raced down the hall and into the room, squealing delightedly the whole way as a matronly rabbit wearing an apron with a carrot stitched on the front of it and a vixen waving a wooden stirring spoon came out into the hall berating them.

The two very young kits ran right between the fox and the bunny that were moments away from coming to blows and scrambled behind a sofa in the corner of the room to hide, giggling and whispering back and forth, though doing a horrible job of preventing anyone else from hearing.

"I told you they'd see us!"

"So?"

"We're going to get in trouble!"

"only if they find us."

"What? Are we going to hide from them forever?"

"Why not? We've got each other!"

*giggle*

"Fine, but what are we going to do for food?"

*giggle and snicker*

"We'll go steal more cookie dough!"

*giggles*

"I can't steal! I'm going to be a cop when I grow up!"

"We weren't really stealing, they were making it for us anyway. And why do you want to be a cop?"

"Because then I can help people, what do you want to be when you grow up?"

"Um, I don't know. Um, I want to be a ranger scout, that way I can help people too!"

*giggle*

"Silly, that's not a job!"

"Well, I'll just be a cop too then!"

*squeal*

"Really!? We could be partners and catch criminals!"

*laughs and giggles*

"That sounds like fun! So, you promise? You'll be my best friend and partner on the police force?"

"YES!" *smooching sound*

"Hey! You can't do that! Girls have cuddies!"

"So? You're my best friend!" *smooching sound*

"Hey, that's embarrassing! Stop or I'll tickle you!"

"Try and I'll tickle you too! And cuddies are a myth!"

*smooching sound followed by squeals of laughter*

A ball of red and gray fur came tumbling out from behind the sofa. It was hard to pick out one kit from the other as they tumbled back and forth laughing the entire time.

The doe and the vixen from the kitchen entered the room.

"Judith!" "Nicholas!" came the simultaneous scolding voices.

The tangled bundle of fur rolling on the floor stopped, and two small faces looked at the pair of wives in the doorway before squealing in fright and running out of the room paw in paw.

The two wives turned their angry attention to the fox and the rabbit that, while still looking ready to fight, also looked a bit startled and confused by the whirlwind of excited kits.

"You two have been in here for 3 hours and gotten nothing done!" The angry doe stated, while the equally angry vixen thumped the wooden stirring spoon while crossing her arms.

The bucks ears drooped and the tods ears flattened. They both looked a little guilty, if still angry, as their wives berated them.

"If you two are so worried about only your own individual families," the doe started after they had sufficiently chastised their husbands, "Then we'll just have to make sure that there's only one family to worry about." The vixen next to the doe nodded her head in agreement.

The buck spoke with a bit of anger, "You expect me to try and consider them family?!" at the same time the tod replied with a defiant, "And how do you expect to do that!"

Both the females grinned in not very pleasant ways. This time it was the vixen that spoke up. "Since you two have been getting nowhere, we've already taken care of it. Bonnie's brother, a lawyer in town here just called us and told us the paperwork has been officially sealed by the town judge." she gestured to where the two small kits had made their escape. And the doe next to her nodded in smug agreement, before they both said, "You two had better start considering what's best for _our_ family."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, Why was gonekrazy3000 leading the press gang? And why does his baton have 'Typo Thumper' painted on it?
> 
> Thanks again to Zeigelzeig for the absolutely awesome cover piece. You can check out the on titled version of the picture here: http://ziegelzeig.deviantart.com/art/Old-Arrangements-679663825 as well as all his other great art.


	2. Chapter 1 – A Start to Senior Year

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How is it still legal to press gang people? and why the hell do you even need to press gang people into the WildeHopps Navy? It's not like there's a war on. Wait, what do you mean there is a war? Seriously?! So what your saying is that if we successfully destroy the Savage & Hopps Navy you'll release me?
> 
> Disclaimer: Disney I don't care if you want to sue me! come save me from these crazy people, we're at.. NOoo (Sounds of weeping writing being dragged away from phone)

Judy Hopps grabbed a seat on the last school bus that pulled up in front of the Hopps farm house. She was in higher spirits than normal. Not only was this the first day of her senior year of highschool but Sheriff Prongs, the old stag that constituted a quarter of the police force in Bunnyburrow, had sent her an email yesterday with information about the recently passed Mammal Inclusion Initiative. Judy nearly bounced in her seat just thinking about it.

Sherriff Prongs was probably the only mammal that hadn't laughed at her dream to become a police officer. _Well okay,_ she thought to herself, _he did laugh the first, and second… and third, fourth, and fifth times I told him._ In fact, he still laughed at the idea, but he hadn't told her that she couldn't be a police officer and to think of something else to do. He'd even taken her under his hoof a bit; this last summer he'd actually offered her an internship at the sheriff's office. The deputies thought that he might just be losing a few marbles in his old age or just humoring her since she wouldn't give up on the idea. But no matter how amusing the old sheriff found the idea, he'd taken the time to mentor her a little and even suggest how she should go about applying to the Zootopia Police Academy.

Judy's pleasant thoughts were interrupted by a voice she was finding that more often than not irritated her.

"Sooo," her sister Jessica said, arms folded on the seat bench looking back at Judy, "I heard Mom and Dad arguing about you-know-what again last night!"

Judy tried not to groan as her sister started in on her favorite topic to needle her with. Last year Jessica, being the biggest gossip all of her siblings (which was impressive considering there where 275 of them) had overheard her parents having a hushed conversation about her arranged marriage. Judy had never known that she was in an arranged marriage, so in her straight forward way she'd asked her parents about it.

All they had told her was that it was something set up when she was a young kit. Her father had seemed particularly unhappy, almost mad about it, and told her not to worry, that she wouldn't have to marry anyone she didn't want to; though by his dubious expression (her father was terrible at hiding anything) he didn't quite believe that. Her mother on the other hand had genuinely seemed worried for her. She'd given her a kiss on her cheek that still had the faint scars from Gideon Gray and told her that if nothing changed, they'd discuss it after she graduated highschool and not to worry about it until then. And despite all her questions and wheedling all she'd been able to drag out of them was the name of her apparent fiancé.

Overall it had not concerned her all that much. Unlike most of her siblings she had never been much into the whole dating thing, (Jessica sometimes called her Jude-the-Prude, though not within earshot of her since Judy had socked her good the last time she'd done it), she had her dream anyway and no one was going to stop her from achieving it. If some buck was going to marry her, well, he'd just have to get used to the idea that Judy wasn't just going to be some housebunny.

The only real problem as she saw it was that Jessica knew about the marriage contract. She hadn't said a word of it to anyone or even named it out loud, but only because Judy had made it clear in no uncertain terms what she would do to her if she started hearing whispers about it. But it had become Jessica's new favorite subject to pester her with for the past year.

"Mom, was telling dad that trying to ignore _it_ , wouldn't make _it_ go away and that they'd better start talking to _their_ family about _it_." Jessica said in a hushed but overly sweet tone as if she was being oh so kind to tell Judy about her eavesdropping.

Judy tried to show exactly how much she didn't care in hopes that her disinterest would bore her sister.

"So what?" she replied, sounding like her sister had told her the sky was blue.

"Sooo, they mentioned that the family was one of the buyers of the farms produce in Zootopia!" She said with a bit of excitement showing through before starting to tease Judy again, "He's a city buck! You're always saying that you're going to be a cop," Jessica couldn't hide her snicker, for which Judy gave her a warning glare ", in Zootopia. At least now, one way or another you'll get to go live in the city. Isn't that so great!" She ended on a tone filled with so much fake happiness that Judy had to resist the urge to twist her ears until she pleaded for mercy.

Instead she opened her backpack and took out the old police academy handbook Sheriff Prongs had given to her and started rereading it again. She loved her family, even Jessica, but sometimes she wished that she had just a few less siblings, or at least a few less annoying siblings, like a particular doe in front of her.

After a few more snickers Jessica finally turned around to gossip with a few bunnies from the neighboring farm. But no matter how much she tried to concentrate she couldn't stop thinking about what Jessica had said.

What would a buck from the big city be like? Everyone said that mammals from the city were different. More progressive, always active. Zootopia was the place where anyone could be anything. Maybe, just maybe he would actually support her dream? She couldn't help but feel a tingle of excitement and hope at that. Maybe, this arranged marriage wouldn't be just another obstacle for her to overcome, maybe it would be like something out of one of the romance books she secretly loved to read (there wasn't a chance in hell she'd let Jessica find out about those).

Judy, couldn't help herself from daydreaming a little bit, just because she wasn't one to always be looking for a boyfriend didn't mean she didn't have desires. She could imagine a strong handsome buck from the city that didn't think her dreams were a joke. Someone that would support her. And maybe he'd be a bit exotic too, she'd always admired bucks with dark brown almost red fur, and eyes… she blushed lightly just thinking about it. If there was one thing she found irresistibly attractive, it was the idea of a buck with striking eyes. Almost all the bunnies in bunny burrows had boring eye colors, usually muddy browns. Judy and some of her siblings were the exception thanks to her mom's side of the family. She could just imagine her dream buck with vivid green eyes. Eyes that she could sink into…

She was cut out of her daydream when an even more unpleasant voice than her sisters caught her ears. She hadn't even realized that the bus had stopped again and that more mammals were coming onto it.

"- I know everything around here's got to be quiet and boring compared to the city but it's not all that bad, just make sure not to trip over all the bunnies! *snicker* Bet you didn't have that problem in the city!" came the voice of Gideon Gray.

Ever since the fight she'd had with him at the county fair they'd never gotten along. Judy's parents and Mr. and Mrs. Gray had sat them down and made them apologize, but even their parents did not get along very well after that. And while they hadn't ever fought again, well physically fought, there had been a cold war going on between them ever since.

She saw Gideon lead another fox she'd never seen in Bunnyburrow before down to the back of the bus, all the while telling him about town and the highschool.

And just like she knew he would, Gideon stopped next to the bench seat she was on.

"And here is Bunnyburrow's own certified loon." Gideon reached over with his chubby paw and snatched the book out of her hand, waving it in front of the other fox. She thinks that she's going to grow up to be a cop! A bunny cop!" He laughed.

Judy jumped up and snatched her book back. "Shove off Grey, at least I'll do something with my life! What are you aspiring to be, a trash collector?" she said with a disdainful look before going back to reading her book and ignoring Gideon and his new friend.

But Gideon wasn't done with her. He leaned down and speaking like he would to a baby said, "Ohh, did I hurt, the wittle little loony bunny's feelings?"

Judy this time didn't even bother to respond and flipped a page in her book.

Gideon was about to continue when the other fox spoke up, "Come on Gid, let's go find a seat. Aunt Martha said that you're supposed to tell me where everything is in this bumpkin town and I've got better things to do than fight with some little cute bunny."

Judy's ear ticked at that. Her hold on her temper, which the world seemed to be testing this morning, slipped. She put the book down stood up on the seat, despite the bus's now moving state, and took two steps until she was at the seats edge. The fox had started to walk by, following Gideon, but she stopped him with a poke to his chest.

"Don't you go calling me cute! That's de…" she froze up for a moment as the fox turned and looked at her. His eyes. She couldn't stop staring at his eyes. They were like emerald green pools. They were exactly like the eyes she'd always fantasized about her dream buck having. "de… demeaning. You don't call a bunny cute. And I'm not little! I'm probably half your weight!"

He just smirked at her, "That still makes you littler than me."

Judy didn't know why but she just couldn't stop staring at the strange fox, there was something in her mind niggling at her, like something she knew she should know, but didn't.

"-Earth to bunny? Fluffy tail? Cotton-tail? Come in, Carrots!" She realized that she'd missed out on a few moments and blinking, come back to herself at last. She only then registered she still had her finger firmly placed in his ruff which spilled over the unbuttoned top of his shirt. She snatched her hand back, like it had been burned.

"Woo there Carrots! I'm not going to hurt you" He said still with that grin on his face. Though his nose twitched a time or two, ruining his attempt to look cool and relaxed.

Judy didn't know what to think about this fox, her mind was racing but coming up with nothing. Something about him, all off him, even his musk seemed familiar, but she couldn't figure out why. So, in her confusion she snapped back with a glare, "Don't call me Carrots! And I'm _Not_ afraid of you!"

He held up both of his hands and took a single step back, "You're the one who froze and jumped back, and you can only ask me not to call you one thing, so cute or Carrots?" he asked giving her another one of those grinning smirks, that sent her mind whirling and coming up with nothing. Again, she spoke before she thought about what she was saying, "Don't call me _Cute_!"

"Carrots it is then. Hey I've got to get back before Gideon thinks that I'm asking you out or something ridiculous like that." And with one short wave, he turned and left, leaving Judy still standing on the seat trying to figure out what the heck had gone wrong with her mind.

For the rest of the ride she desperately tried to focus on her book, but simply couldn't. No matter how much she tried not to, her mind inevitably wound up back on the new fox. _Those eyes_. She shook her head again. Why couldn't she stop thinking about him? She'd even started sneaking peaks back at him, but he seemed mostly occupied talking to Gideon who was introducing him to his best friend and sidekick, a weasel named Brian from town. Once or twice she thought she might have even caught him glancing back at her, but she was sure that she was just imagining things.

The bus pulled up in front of the Bunnyburrow highschool and Judy shook her head one last time, determined to stop thinking about the fox.

…

As Judy sat in homeroom, she thought about the fact that the world not only seemed to be testing her control on her temper today, but also her patience. Bunnyburrow wasn't that big of a town and though there were a few large farming families, the Hopps were by far the biggest. Judy and her siblings almost made up a tenth of the entire highschool. But even as small as it was, it was still big enough that she should not have been placed in the same homeroom class as that fox! And to make it worse, he had taken the seat right behind her. She was sure he'd done it just to annoy her. And he was doing a damned good job of it too. She could smell just a hint of his stronger fox musk and it was driving her nuts. Her mind kept insisting that there was something she should know, that the scent was familiar in some way but every time she tried to pull the information from her mind she drew a blank.

Her ears twitched as she heard him inhale and exhale a large breath again. She didn't know how he'd figured out that his scent was bothering her but he now seemed determined to blow on her and irritate her further. _Stupid, dumb, irritating fox!_ She couldn't help but think. If he really was Gideon's cousin, than despite their drastically different looks they seemed to share a common mean streak. The new fox wasn't doing anything she could call him out for, but he seemed like he'd made it his personal goal to pester her.

Their home room teacher Mr. Weston, a small brown bear, well... small for a bear at least, came in and started going through roll call, calling out names and checking them down on his notepad as the students answered.

"Hopps, Judith." Mr. Weston called.

And Judy responded with a prompt, "Here!" before returning to her thoughts about the increasingly annoying fox behind her. He and his dumb smirking grin, and his…

Her thoughts came to an abrupt halt when another students name was called.

"Wilde, Nicholas."

It wasn't a name from anyone in or around town. And in a small country town like this it was almost impossible to not know everyone else. But that was a name she was very, _very_ familiar with. It was a name she'd wondered about for the past year. She hadn't seen any new bucks come into her homeroom class, in fact the only student she hadn't known was-

Before she could finish the thought a voice behind her spoke up with a lazy, "Here."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yikes, gonekrazy3000 and his 'typo thumper' are terrifying!
> 
> Also Thank you Cimar of Turalis WildeHopps, your admiral-ship, for letting this deck-hand steal your character name.
> 
> As for why this updated so quickly, well blame people reviewing and favoriting it as well as plot bunnies and coffee. Now I have to get back to my other story. (Did I, a hardcore reader, really just say that?! What is this world coming to?)


	3. Chapter 2 – Revelations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the slow updates, my other story will be updated soon too, but sometimes real life gets in the way of fun things. Sometimes you actually have to do real work, or take care of stuff, or get press ganged by insane WildeHopps zealots.
> 
> Disclaimer: Ugh, too tired to care right now, try again tomorrow.

Judy's mind froze. Well froze was an understatement, it was more like a car wreck, an epic car wreck that turned into a massive pile up and shut down the entire highway of her brain. The only portion that still seemed to be functional was the sarcastic portion in the back of her mind that had happened to be walking instead of driving. _Of course you'd be engaged to an annoying_ _ **fox**_ _, should have seen that coming the way your days been going._ It was enough for Judy to let out a groan and flop her head forward onto her desk, her ears going limp and falling over the front edge.

She couldn't help but indulge in some self-pity at the moment.

_Why, of all mammals, did I have to be engaged to someone who has made it their mission in life to annoy me?_

_And a_ _**fox** _ _? Can't forget about that little detail._

_Cheese and Crackers! What had happened to make my parents engage me to a fox?_

_And a snarky, irritating one at that!_

_Maybe they didn't know he was a fox?_

_Carrot Sticks! Unless this is some sort of colossal mistake, I'm going to end up married to an infuriating fox for the rest of my life!_

_At least he has beautiful eyes._

A few more mental cars crashed into the pile up at that, before she ruthlessly squashed the thought.

But before she could think of much else there was a tap on her shoulder and an almost concerned voice whispered, "pssst, Carrots? You alright there?"

She let out a groan.

"This day couldn't possibly get any worse." she mumbled to no one in particular.

"Now don't be like that", came the still whispering but now smug voice from behind her, "This is only homeroom, there's still plenty of time for today to get worse."

Judy had just raised her head and turned around to tell him just how she would make his day worse when Mr. Weston called out, "If you two are done with your private conversation, I'll continue."

Judy turned back forward, ears burning in embarrassment for having been called out like that. She could hear a quiet snicker from behind her, and determinedly decided to ignore the fox for the rest of homeroom.

…

Unfortunately, ignoring the fox didn't keep her mind from thinking about him. It did however give her some time to think. When the bell finally sounded, she got up and turning to the fox said, "We need to talk."

He gave her another smirk before replying, "Isn't that what we're doing?"

 _Insufferable, irritating, annoying, fox!_ He made her want to pull her ears out. She almost growled but kept her voice even, "I mean privately, now come on."

Judy had taken a few steps before she turned around to see he hadn't followed her, in fact he had an almost confused look on his face as he took another deep breath and his nose scrunched slightly. She stormed back over and since he wasn't wearing a tie or anything else she could conveniently grab, she reluctantly snatched his paw and nearly dragged him out of the room.

* * *

Nick had found it amusing, almost charming, how the bold little bunny grabbed his paw and pulled him out of the classroom and down the hall. He'd at first thought that she had caught him sniffing her scent in the classroom and was going to berate him for it. It was pretty rude after all, but he thought he'd been subtle about it. However she wouldn't bother dragging him down the hallway like this if she had intended to just tell him off.

He took another careful breath and sniff catching her strange scent again. It wasn't that it was weird or even all that dissimilar to other bunnies, but every mammal smelled just a bit different, had a touch of uniqueness that separated them from the rest of their species. Since foxes were one of the species with a better sense of smell, this was especially apparent for him. Not only could he tell one mammal from another, like the bunny dragging him along probably could, but each mammals scent had multiple complex layers. And something about this bunny's scent was different, special even. Unfortunately for him though, he couldn't figure out exactly what that special aspect was; the sense of smell after all was a very abstract sense, it was more like interpreting a painting than reading a book.

Following in her wake as she moved through the hallway, he didn't even need to take a deep breath to get a good sniff of her scent. _Smells like bunny and lavender shampoo and grass fields and vegetables, bit of stress and excitement and a touch of something else_ , he concentrated harder trying to clarify the complex weave of the smell that was this particular bunny. He couldn't define it properly but if he had to try and put it into words, her scent smelled like, like happiness and comfort. He nearly shook his head at the mental description.

Strange, that was what this bunny was.

Near the end of the hallway and close to the science labs, where there weren't any lockers that most of the other students were congregating around she stopped. Taking a quick look around, she quickly opened a door and pushed him into what appeared to be a janitor's closet.

By this time, he was thoroughly confused as to what she wanted, so as soon she'd closed the door and turned to face him, he let his automatic wit take over.

"You know, its polite to at least ask a guy out before dragging him off somewhere to make out, and isn't a janitor's closet just a little bit cliché?" he said giving her his best grin.

She had opened her mouth to say something before he spoke but ended up spluttering out a, "W-What?! No, No that's not-"

Nick cut in before she could finish speaking, he was starting to enjoy this and he needed something fun to compensate for the situation that had lead him to being sent out to the middle of no-where to finish his senior year of highschool. And anyway, despite what she might have said she was cute, especially how her pink nose twitched when she was flustered and mad.

"Carrots, come on, the highschool janitors closet? The only way you could get more cliché was if you dragged me under the bleachers."

Nick had to work hard to keep from laughing as embarrassment and anger seemed to be having a battle for control of her face. After a few moments anger seemed to win out and she snapped back at him, "Stop calling me that! And I did _not_ bring you here to makeout! You're a fox anyway!"

He leaned down so they were looking eye to eye, she did have wonderfully beautiful eyes, and gave her the most charming smile he could manage before saying, "Too bad, you're so cute I might just go out with you even though you're not a vixen."

That caused a few more splutters and made her ears go bright pink. That hint of a smell in her scent from earlier grew just a bit. She was actually very cute, he thought, the mix of her determination and embarrassment along with her fit figure was a very attractive combination even to him as a fox. He wondered why she hadn't been sitting paired up with some buck on the bus or before class. Nick decided that he did like her despite everything his cousin had said about her.

She finally seemed to get her voice back under control because she poked him in the chest again and nearly snarled in a deliberate and slow tone, "I brought you here so I could figure out why my mysterious fiancée turns up during my senior year and. Is. A. _Fox_!"

And she had a sense of humor. Yes, he definitely liked this bunny. "Well, Carrots I have to give you credit, I've never heard a pickup line like that before." He smirked, "I know that I'm strikingly handsome but I didn't think that I was so good looking that I could make _bunnies_ fall ears over tail in love with me at first sight."

Her response caught him off guard; he was expecting the flustered mad expression yes, but not what she said.

"I'm not fooling around Nicholas Piberius Wilde!"

His ears flattened, "Hey, how do you know my middle name?!" gods, had Gideon gone around and told everyone at the school? Being the new mammal during senior year was going to suck enough without having everyone laughing at his middle name.

"Because I'm supposed to marry a Nicholas Piberius Wilde!" she shot back at him, still mad.

Whatever fun he'd been having had vanished, "Okay, I'm sorry for teasing you, you can stop now. This isn't funny anymore. Did Gideon tell you my middle name?"

Her anger seemed to have diminished but had left behind a mountain of exasperation. "I'm not joking! There's a marriage contract for me to marry one Nicholas Piberius Wilde. All I know of it besides the name of the buck, well mammal, that I'm going to have to marry is that they're from a family we sell produce to in the city."

"Wait, you're from that Hopps family?" Nick said, his mind spinning. This had to be some sort of joke, a prank on the new mammal in the senior class.

The rabbit nodded, saying, "Yes, I'm Judy Hopps. You'd know that if you been paying attention to roll call instead of trying to annoy me by breathing on my neck."

Nick blushed and was glad his fur hid it, "I wasn't breathing on you! I was…" He shut up before he said something really stupid. The look the bunny, well Judy, gave him clearly said, 'Oh, really?'.

Nick crossed his arms and said, "Ok, look. I get it. You're really friends with Gideon and you two have staged everything today to pull a prank on me. He told you my full name and that my dad's grocery store buys food from your farm. Congratulations," he clapped his paws a few times, "You two got me, even had me going there for a minute. Now, if you don't mind I've got to go to my locker before next period."

He turned and reached for the door handle, but her paw grabbed his arm and turned him to face her before she said seriously, "I'm _Not_ Joking!".

Nick was starting to get mad, in fact he was really starting to get worried that she wasn't kidding, but the thought that she wasn't, terrified him. So getting mad seemed like a better option. Anyways, it was ridiculous to think that his parents would arrange a marriage for him to a _bunny_ , or that they'd never tell him. The idea was absurd, especially with that incident with the ranger scouts he'd had as a kit. His parents would never arrange for him to marry a prey mammal after that!

He had opened his mouth to tell her exactly that when the door opened behind him, knocking him into Judy. They tumbled forward in an awkward tangle of limbs onto the ground.

There were several gasps, snickers, and laughs, and a deeper exasperated mutter of 'high schoolers'.

Nick, with a flood of embarrassment the likes of which he'd never experienced before, yanked his mouth off the bunny's and whipped his head around. Most of the door was filled with Mr. Weston, but there was enough room for plenty of the students in the hallway to see them. One of them, another bunny, had her phone out and took a few pictures before squealing, "Judy!? You're making out with the new _fox_?! What about your _fiancée_?!"

Most of the other students went quiet at that, though there was a muttering of, 'fiancée?'s and scandalous, 'Ohh!'s.

There was an angry cry from the bunny below him. " _Jessica_!" and the bunny with the phone in the hall muttered an "Oh, didn't mean to say that!" before turning to make her escape.

"Would you two get up please?" grumbled Mr. Weston.

Nick realized that he was still mostly on top of Judy, she'd somehow managed during the fall to get a leg hooked around his hindpaw and had wrapped her arms around his chest. They both scrambled apart and got up not looking at each other or anywhere but at the floor for that matter.

Mr. Weston turned and with a stern glare sent the other students scurrying on their way before continuing, "Now I know this is senior year and everything but you can't go making out on school grounds, especially not during the school day." He turned to look straight at Judy, "Now what is this about you being engaged? I haven't heard about any buck proposing to you and I'd have thought that you of all the bunnies here would take that more seriously, Judith."

Judy's ears were flat against the back of her head, though Nick could see the blush on her cheeks even through her fur. She mumbled something.

"What was that? Come now, speak up. This isn't like you at all Judith." Mr. Weston said.

She mumbled again but this time it was understandable, barely, "I have an arranged marriage," she gave a nervous embarrassed glance at Nick, and squeaked, "to him."

Mr. Weston just grunted and muttered, "Explains the transfer." Before hitting them with a stern glare, "Engaged or not, that's not an excuse. Don't let me catch you two doing this again." And he turned, walking away down the corridor shaking his large head.

Nick looked at the bear, then at the bunny, and back at the bear. This couldn't be true. It couldn't be. But would she lie to a teacher? She'd been wearing her emotions on her sleeve since he'd met the bunny, Judy. But, but… It simply couldn't be true. He gave the bunny one last embarrassed panicked glance before he dashed out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Due to corrections and a few bruises the following disclaimer has now been redacted:
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: Either wait a bit to read, or read at your own peril. This message will be squashed when 'Typo Thumper' squashes all the typos out of this story.


	4. Chapter 3 – Rumors

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, it turns out that Gideon's weasel friend actually had a name from the movie so, I went back and corrected that. So if you read the story from before that was fixed I hope you don't trip. Ok, you got me I might be hoping you trip so I can laugh at you, Sue me, I'm a grinch.
> 
> So I was wondering why the WildeHopps navy was kidnapping writers. Why their ship need us, I mean them (still clinging to my reader only status). Did they need us to shovel coal, to haul on lines or raise sails? well the answer is no. Apparently they've found a better solution then even the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy restaurant math drive; they have all the authors down in the belly of the ship lined up like oars men writing away. *Sigh*, Should have seen that one coming.
> 
> Disclaimer 1: *Insert from WildeHopps Navy legal department* suing on grounds of offender being a grinch is not legitimate reason for a legal case; we suggest pepper spray instead, Fox Away will work in a pinch.
> 
> Disclaimer 2: Disney if this message in a wine bottle finds you, COME SAVE ME! We'll be at... *Rest of message indecipherable do to water damage*

Nick hadn't been joking when he'd told Judy, no the crazy bunny, that the day could always get worse. In his experience, things could always get worse. He'd expected that transferring to a new highschool for his senior year would be rough, had known that the teasing and rumors might get bad, he'd been ready for that. What he hadn't been ready for was just _how_ bad things had gotten before even his first class. The morning turned into one of the worst ordeals he'd ever had to face.

He knew none of his class mates except Gideon, Gideon's friend Travis, and Jud-, the bunny. Everyone though, knew exactly who he was and seemed to be talking of nothing else. Forget just being a city mammal and a fox out in this podunk little town (He didn't care if Gideon had told him there actually was a town named Podunk in Deerbrook county) but he was the new transfer student, and a senior year one at that, caught on his first day making out with a bunny. The rumors seemed to have made it to every student in the school and most of the teachers too, and they were growing like an out of control wildfire in a dry forest.

"Did you hear?"

"Yes that's him. He was making out with Hopps, No not that Hopps, _that_ Hopps. Yes, the prudish one. Yes, I know!"

"I heard that they were doing _more_ than making out."

"I heard that she was engaged to someone else! Can you believe how _scandalous_ that is!"

"You think they're planning on eloping?"

"Do you think that she's hooking up with him to get out of her engagement"

"If that was the case, then why are they trying to hide it?"

"No they weren't faking it, nobody could fake _that_!"

Calculus had been the worst yet. It turned out that he shared the class with J-, the bunny, and the teacher, an old ewe, had pointedly made them change seats so that they were sitting on opposite sides of the front row, were she could 'keep an eye on them'.

Nick had thought the bell announcing the end of his calculus class and the start to lunch period was a blessing. But he revised that opinion after stepping into the cafeteria and having the entire room go quiet. It stayed like that for a few moments before the noise came back at double the volume as other students started hurriedly whispering together; Nick found himself wishing to be back in the calculus class. Mrs. Woolstein might have embarrassed him in front of the whole class but her ruthlessly uncaring attitude (well at least for anything other than math) and her ruler had been death on all the rumors and conversations too.

Nick quickly made his way through the lunch line before sitting down at a table with Gideon and Travis. It might be a pointless question but he wanted to ask Gideon if he'd told Judy, _darnit_ , _the_ _bunny_ , about his middle name. It might be a snowballs chance in hell that this was some sort of elaborate prank but he was willing to pack his winter clothes and go check on that snowball just in case hell had frozen over.

Gideon, however spoke before he got the chance to.

"Nick! What were you thinking?!" Gideon seemed like he was trying to hold back real anger as he spoke, "I can understand you wanting to go after girls, but a bunny?! And out of all of them, Loony Judy?!"

"It's not what it looked like," Nick started to explain, but Gideon cut him off with a loud scoff.

"You're not going to fool anyone Nick." He said in a pissed off and patronizing tone before pulling out his cell phone and clicking on it a few times. He slamming it down on the table where Nick could see the screen.

Nick blanched. _No, No, NO!_ _Oh, gods No!_

The photo screen showed a photo framing him and Judy, and it looked damnably incriminating. If he had not been the person in the photo he wouldn't have believed it was anything else than what it obviously appeared to be. _How the hell did a fall end up like that?_ The way their arms and limbs were splayed around each other made it look like they were desperately clutching at each other and worst of all was the way his and her muzzles were connected. Her head was tilted back with her jaw slightly ajar while his was turned at a bit, angled to perfectly cover hers. It didn't look like they'd been interrupted while making out, it looked like they'd been interrupted while french kissing the hell out of each other and moments away from ripping each other's clothes off.

_No one who sees this is going to believe we just fell down._

Nick looked up at Gideon panicking, "Who sent you this, has anyone else seen it?!"

Gideon scoffed again and waved his arm, gesturing at the entire room. "There isn't a mammal here who hasn't seen that picture. Everyone knows that you and Loony Judy have already hooked up."

"Did more than just, 'hook up'." Travis, snickered.

Gideon crossed his arms and shot Nick an angry glare, "I thought you were better than to lower yourself to that level just to grab some tail. You think we'll ever be friends with some dumb cutesy bunny? If you thought we would accept a _bunny_ , then you're even dumber than you look."

The words hammered into Nick, echoing in his memories. His ears went flat against his head, the sights, sounds and feelings flashing back unbidden. He remembered the paws and hooves roughly holding him down against the floor, the cold steel of the muzzle being forced on him and the pain of the straps biting into his fur as the other kit, someone he'd wanted to be friends with, to be part of a pack with, spoke down derisively to him, voice filled with the same scorn and contempt as Gideon's, _'If you thought we would ever trust a fox without a muzzle, you're even dumber than you look.'_

But Gideon wasn't done, he continued, ripping open Nick's oldest and deepest scars. "And out of all the dumb air brained bunnies you had to go after the dumbest of them all." Gideon jabbed a claw tip into Nick's chest. "She's so stupid even by bunny standards that she hasn't even been able to ever get a buck to go out with her! A bunny so useless, that she fails at the only thing bunnies can do." He leaned forward, lips pulling back in a jeering snarl, "I heard today that since she has no prospects at all, that her parents tried to arrange a marriage and that her fiancé doesn't even want to touch her let alone marry her. That's why she was throwing herself at you. You're the only mammal in a hundred miles that doesn't-"

"Shut up" Nick snarled, and Gideon stopped surprised claw still extended poking Nick in the chest. Nick could feel his hackles standing on end. He was nearly shaking with rage; his paws were clenched and he could feel the points of his claws pressing into his paw pads as they tried to extend.

"What did you say?" Gideon asked blinking in surprise.

"I said, _Shut up._ " Nick snarled again. The quiet around their table from the other students that had been eavesdropping spread to the whole cafeteria, but Nick didn't care. He was too mad to care.

"Oh, come on Nick" Gideon said loudly in exasperation, throwing his paws up, "Stop pretending to care for some dumb bunny! Jeez, if you want to kiss somebody, any girl here, even any other _bunny_ ," he sneered that word, "would be better than _her_!"

"I'll kiss her if I damned well want too," Nick snarled back, nearly shouting now, as he jabbed Gideon hard enough to push the other fox back and put a hole in his shirt, "I'd kiss her before I'd kiss anyone else here!"

Gideon was looking shocked and angry, "Nick, she's a stupid crazy _bunny_ who thinks that she can be a _cop_! Do you really think she'll ever want more than to use you? You think she'll ever be your friend? Stop being dumber than you're making yourself look already."

Those old words rolled through him again, _'If you thought we would ever trust a fox without a muzzle, you're even dumber than you look.'_ Nick wasn't sure if she would ever even want to be his friend, but as angry as she'd been, as strange as she was, she hadn't belittled him or anyone else.

Nick shoved Gideon back. He grabbed his tray of food, claws digging into the plastic as it shook in his grip.

With one last look at Gideon, he snarled, loading his voice with so much contempt for the other fox that he actually flinched, "She'll be a cop if that's damned well what she wants to do, and I'd rather be her friend, than a friend of a bigoted jerk like you." He turned and stormed through the silent cafeteria and out through the doors to the cafeteria patio.

As the door closed behind him, he heard Gideon shout angrily, "You deserve to be with that loon! You're just as much of an idiot as she is!"

Nick found an empty table at the far corner of the patio and sat down. He was too angry to eat and just shifted the food around on his tray.

He'd only been here for a few days settling in at his aunt and uncle's house but Gideon's sense of humor had already started grating on him. There'd been a mean and vindictive streak in it, but to find out that his cousin was just as bigoted and cruel as the kits from his old ranger scout group made him feel disgusted that he was even related to him.

He didn't care if he might have just thrown away the only friends in this stupid town that he was likely to have. He'd rather be friendless than have friends like… like _that_. He clenched his paw just thinking back on Gideon and the ranger scouts and the plastic spork snapped in his grip.

He'd take the irritated and angry enmity that seemed to have developed between him and the bun-… Judy. Even if she was dreaming of impossible goals, he'd rather be friends, or even just be around her, rather than someone like Gideon.

He sighed, he'd just have to survive this gods awful year and then he could leave and never see this town or Gideon's face again.

Nick was jarred out of his thoughts as two trays were placed on the other side of the table. Nick looked up to see a sheep and a cougar sit down across from him. He was still thinking about Gideon and the old wounds he'd reopened and snapped at them.

"What do you two want? Here to laugh at me too and tell me how stupid I am?"

The two looked at each other a little warily, before the cougar spoke up hesitantly, "No…we actually wanted to thank you for sticking up for Judy."

Nick put the broken pieces of his spork down, and sighing tried to calm himself. "I didn't do that for her." He said, and the other two looked at him, their expressions clearly not believing him. "I just hate it when mammals are jerks and bullies like that."

This time it was the sheep that spoke up, "You said that she could be a cop, not many people believe in her."

Nick shrugged, looking down. "I'm not entirely sure she can be, it's a hell of an ambitious goal for her. I don't think I'd even try for something so far out of reach."

"Then you don't think she should try?" the sheep asked and Nick shook his head.

"I'm not going to try and tell her she can't. Who knows, she's bold enough that she might just manage it." he smiled just a bit, "I hope she does, if for no other reason than to be able to rub it in Gideon's face and any other mammal like him."

The sheep and the cougar looked at each other for a moment seeming to have some sort of silent conversation before nodding and turning back to Nick and reaching out their paw and hoof to shake his.

"Names Bobby Catmull." Said the cougar, before the sheep introduced himself, "I'm Gareth Woolstein."

* * *

Judy had taken her bagged lunch outside to her favorite spot under one of the trees. It was a nice spot around the side of the school that gave a view of fields and woods and offered a refreshing breeze plus shade from the sun. She hadn't wanted to deal with the hideous mess of rumors that the gossip mill known as the cafeteria would be. She'd never been so embarrassed before in her entire life and instead of the rumors dying down they were getting worse. Even her small group of close friends didn't believe her when she tried to explain that they hadn't been making out. They'd smiled knowingly and just congratulated her on finding a boyfriend. They'd tried digging for details on how long she'd known him and when they'd started going out, not believing that they'd just met. She'd finally stopped talking all together when they started asking her whether it was true that she was engaged.

 _Jessica_! Judy thought, still incensed over her sister's slipup. She'd been the one to send _that_ photo out to everybody. Apparently, she thought that since she'd already incurred Judy's wrath that the little extra juicy tid-bit wouldn't get her in any more trouble.

_Cheese and Crackers! Thank gods I at least managed to get her to hold her tongue about the fact that I'm engaged to him!_

As soon as that photo had hit her phone right before the first class, Judy had texted Jessica threatening to shave her tail if she said one more word about the picture or _it_ to anybody.

She was day dreaming about what she could do to her sister and munching away at her sandwich when a black sheep came running up to her with her hooves over her mouth.

Judy sighed, "Sharla, can you please give your interrogation a break for a bit," she took in her best friends excited state, and sighed deeper, "or at least wait till I'm done eating?"

"It's not that!" the ewe nearly squealed, "It's your boyfriend!"

"He's not my-, oh never mind," she rubbed her paw against her temples in trying to prevent a headache from forming, "What did he do?" Nick had run off after the janitor closet incident and he'd fled every time she'd seen so much as a glance of him in the hallways. She still wanted to talk to him about their arranged marriage but it seemed that he knew less about it than she did. For the thousandth time, she tried to figure out why their parents would have set this up and then never told them about it.

Sharla managed to pull her attention away from the thought though.

"He just had a fight with Gideon Gray over you in the cafeteria!" she said in an excited burst.

Judy was pretty sure she heard her wrong, and let out a confused, "What?"

Sharla was giggling so much that she almost couldn't speak, " _Your fox_ said in front of _everyone_ that he _likes_ you. That he believed in your dream and that Gideon could go shove himself because he'd rather be with _you_ than be Gideon's friend!"

Judy's mouth was hanging open, as if to say 'Ohh' and her ears were starting to burn. She could feel her heart stop for a second before hammering away and a mix of emotions swell in her.

"I know!" Sharla squealed, actually jumping in excitement, "It was _sooo_ romantic! Gideon said that he'd be better off with anyone else, and he told Gideon that he didn't want _anyone_ else!" Judy felt like her ears were on fire. She grabbed them and used them to cover her eyes and blushing cheeks, while she tried to get a handle on her runaway emotions.

 _Had he really said all that? Did he really think that she could be a police officer? He'd been so smug and annoying before, but then there were his jokes in the closet about going out with her. Were they jokes? Did he really find her attractive? Would he really want to go out with her?_ Her heart skipped another beat and she blushed harder, muttering, 'dumb fox'.

Sharla hadn't missed any of Judy's reactions and she squealed in delight. "I knew it!" Judy peeked out around one ear to try and set her straight, but Sharla continued on, her joyful smile stretching completely across her face., "What did you do to him to make him fall in _love_ with you like that?"

Judy's heart skipped again and she spluttered, "L-Love?"

Sharla looked at her and giggled, "Duhh, silly. He might not want to admit it but he's completely in love with you, I thought that would be clear after your little adventure in the janitor's closet," she teased.

Judy's mind brought up the memory of his large warm body covering her, and the brief feeling and taste of his mouth… "We we-weren't! I Wasn't!-"

Sharla cut her off, "Then why did you just go all doe eyed thinking back on it?" she rolled her eyes, "Fine, if you want to still pretend you weren't making out with your _boyfriend_ ,"

"H-He's not my-" Judy tried to get out but Sharla rolled right over her, "or that he isn't in love with you, then why has he been sneaking glances at you since this morning on the bus? For that matter, if you want to deny that you like him, why were _you_ sneaking glances at him?"

Judy's blush flared to new heights, "He wasn't… I wasn't… that doesn't mean anything!" Judy said desperately before realizing her admission and shutting her mouth with a 'plop' before she said anything else incriminating.

Sharla was grinning like she'd just won the lottery, "So you do admit it!" Judy covered her face with her ears again and shook her head in a weak denial.

"Well then, if you still won't admit that you are _in_ _love_ with him or that he's _in_ _love_ with you, tell me why you dragged him off by the paw to the _janitor's closet_." Judy gulped, the explanation for that one might be worse than the Sharla's assumption. But Sharla wasn't done with her just yet, "And, how do you explain the fact that he was sniffing you in homeroom?" she said as if checkmating her in a chess match.

"W-What?!" Judy squeaked pulling her ears away from her eyes in shock. She just stared at her friend who was looking overly pleased with herself. "He was doing _what_?" Judy repeated, still stunned.

"Oh come on, Judy, you had to have noticed. You can usually pick up on every detail of what's going on in a room without trying, but you couldn't notice the fox sitting behind you smelling you?"

"He wasn't! He was breathing on me to annoy me!" Judy shook her head not believing it, not wanting to believe it, though her heart was beating at a sprinting pace as she re-examined every memory.

 _No! he couldn't have been, could he? but why would he?_ Her mind provided one possible answer and she flatly refused to believe it and shook her head harder as if that would make it not so.

Sharla still grinning came in for the kill, "He's a _fox_ , Judy. He's got a much better sense of smell than us. I've been watching you two closely since the bus incident this morning and while he was trying his best to hide what he was doing, he _was_ sniffing you! Why else would he be doing that if he wasn't deeply attracted to you?"

Judy knew her face and ears must look like a tomato by now, but she tried to rally one last time, "You can't know that for sure!"

Sharla's grin widened and struck, going for the final finishing blow, "Then why was his mouth twitching up in a smile and his tail wagging every time he sniffed you?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Redacted Typo Disclaimer: I may have tried tying the boot straps of my proofreader to a cannon ball and throwing him overboard. Unfortunately, Davy Jones returned him from the depths (Jones had some suspicious bruised that looked a like they may have come from 'typo thumper'). So I'm going to post this before he comes after me, since I'm a dead grinch anyway. (to sum up he's back and starting to work on the chapters)
> 
> Writer in galley peeling a mountain of potatoes, mumbling "Next time I'll use two cannon balls, and an anchor."


	5. Chapter 4 – Respite and Mounting Storms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Typo Disclaimer: My proofreader was so good this year, he got invited to Santa's Christmas After-party. He deserves it and probably needed this break. We'll get this proofread after he gets back from the north pole.
> 
> Ok, I can get the reasoning behind the whole WildeHopps Navy and their war, (Even if I think their all Loons) but do I really have to wear this stupid uniform? I mean come on, what the hell is this stupid little flappy thing around my neck? It looks like blue striped table napkin but its on the wrong way round, it won't even prevent food from getting on the uniform! And the hats? Whoever came up with these hats is a sadist. They make dorks, nerds, and geeks look super cool. I'll take buck teeth with braces and coke bottle glasses any day over this.
> 
> Disclaimer: Disney, just look for the ship full of idiotically dressed sailors, that's where we are.

Nick's last class of the day had been gym, which let out early after going over the course curriculum, expectations, and acceptable gym clothes to bring to class. He normally would have been ecstatic about such a lucky break, but he had too many other thoughts on his mind.

Bobby and Gareth sitting with him had seemed like the only bright spot in an otherwise horrible, even by _highschool_ standards, first day. And like rubbing salt in a wound both Gideon and Judy were not only in the same home-ec class as him but in gym too. Gideon seemed to be trying to ignore Nick's existence, but whenever that failed he would glare or make some jibe about him and Judy. Judy on the other hand had stopped trying to corner him again and was instead keeping her distance. Anytime they seemed to catch each other's gaze, they would quickly look away. Nick simply didn't know _what_ to think about her, not that was stopping his mind from trying. He couldn't seem to get Gideon and _her_ out of his head.

Maybe it was just because Gideon had been bullying her. The experience with the ranger scouts was one of the clearest memories from his early childhood and had seemed to have defined part of him. Nick absolutely hated mammals that picked on and bullied others for any reason. He didn't know if it was some warped sense of what the world should have been or simple retribution for what had happened to him, but while he had tried to avoid outright fighting, he had taken every opportunity that had ever come up to get back at bullies.

If all they could see him as was a sly conniving fox, then he would show them sly and conniving. While he knew it was a petty low way of dealing with problems, and he certainly wasn't proud of it, the tricks and humiliations he had dished out over the years to other bullies had at least stopping them from picking on other kits. Well mostly stopped anyway. It had back-fire spectacularly a few times and gotten him in more than a few fights and trouble. It was after all, the reason he was now finishing highschool out away from the city.

Nick didn't know what had happened to Gideon; he had a few vague memories of him when they were young kits but he seemed like an entirely different mammal now. Then again he himself probably seemed nothing like the kit he had been back then either.

Nick finished packing his bag from his locker and went out the front entrance to wait for the bus; he doubted that Gideon would still want to show him around the town this afternoon, not that he really wanted to be around Gideon either.

There wasn't a cloud in the sky to shade the sun and his sun glasses were still packed away in his luggage bag at this Aunt and Uncle's.

"Of Course," he muttered, squinting a bit and looking around. He spotted a large oak tree of to the side of the school and headed over to get out of the too bright sun.

He could tell by the lingering scents that this was a popular spot, but he didn't bother trying to sort them out, the last thing he wanted to do right now was think about other students and the rumors they were making and spreading. He pulled out his phone and looked at the time.

He wanted, needed to call his parents and talk to them, to ask them if everything Judy had said was true. But today was Monday, they both would be busy right now at the story doing the weekly inventory and restocking. He sighed and set an alarm before leaning back against the tree and closing his eyes. Tonight promised to be _fun_. He'd get to talk to his parents about... _her_ and he would be stuck not only sharing a house with Gideon but the same _bedroom_ since the bunk-bed in Gideon's room was the only spare one in the house. Nick sighed again, and tried to forget the world, if only for just for a little while.

* * *

Judy had gotten sidelined by not only Sharla, but also Garth and Bobby after gym class. She'd been so distracted by the tumbling mix of emotions and questions about _him,_ that she hadn't even noticed her friends had been in the last two classes with her.

It took her nearly ten minutes to extract herself from them, and she could feel her ears burning as she made her escape.

She'd just finish collecting her things and had decided that she'd rather walk home than catch the bus; it would give her some mush needed time to think without others around. She was walking down the hall when her long ears caught voices by the back entrance she'd been heading for.

"I can't believe it! Out of everybody he'd want her? And _I'm_ related to that idiot?"

*snicker* "pretty stupid. But come on I want to get a bite from Marvin's. He's got a new arcade game, and if we don't get there quick it'll be swamped."

"You don't get it Travis, I have to live with him. I'm going to have to look at his disgusting face every day."

"Your problem, not mine. Now are you coming or not?"

"I don't think so. If it's my damn problem then I'm going to go do something about it."

Judy rounded the corner and both Gideon and Travis looked over at her.

Travis ignored her, opening the door, "I'm heading out Gideon, you can still come if you want." But Gideon wasn't paying attention to him, he was already sneering at Judy,

"Well, if it isn't Jude the Prude, oh I forgot," Gideon let out a harsh laugh, "I guess since your cheating on your _fiancée_ , I can't call you that, Floozy Judy."

Judy ignored him as she passed and headed for the door. Gideon tried to trip her but she nimbly hopped over his foot without even breaking her pace.

"Loony Floozy Judy," Gideon said in almost sing song voice as she opened the other door across from Travis, "Do you know just how disgusting that makes you, going after a fox?" he visibly sniffed the air and then sneered, "I can still smell him on you. But I guess you're lucky there's some other mammal as stupid and perverted as you out there. You'd better be careful though, he's so stupid he might bite you by accident instead of kissing you-"

Judy usually ignored Gideon, but his insults hit right on topic that formed the center of the mess of her thoughts, and it was like touching a raw nerve. She whipped around to face Gideon.

"Gideon, I usually put up with all your Carrot Blasted childish name calling, but if call me another or make one more comment about Nick, I swear that this time I'll break that nose of yours rather than just make it bleed."

Gideon stiffened and she could see his claws come out of their sheathes. He took a step toward her, "You stupid little rabbit," he started, but before he could take another step Travis was in front of him, blocking his path from Judy, where she stood, bookbag dropped, ready to fight.

"Whoo, cool it both of you!" He pushed back against Gideon, stopping the larger fox from taking another step, "Do you both want to get suspended?" he turned to Judy, "Loo-,… Judy. Why don't you leave, I don't think you can become a police officer if Sheriff Prongs has to put something in your record for getting in a serious fight at school."

Judy shot Gideon one more mad glare, grabbed her bag and stormed out of the building. She could hear the bits of the remaining conversation as she stormed away.

"You're on _her_ side?! I Thought you were _my_ friend!"

"Oh, get of it Gid, I've never been friends with her, and it's _because_ I'm your best friend that I'm stopping you and telling you that you were about to take it too far."

"You think some cock sure little _prey_ is going to beat me?!"

"No, you'd tear her up something bloody. But you aren't some kit anymore, you'd get more than just a punishment and talking to like you did for that incident at the fair. You'd get in serious trouble. _And_ you'd get her new boyfriend pissed off at you."

"I can take him-"

"Sure, you could probably take him too, but you'd get messed up as well, I've heard he got sent out here _because_ he was getting in fights. Come on Gid, cool down. It _isn't_ worth it. let the two dorks be together and we can sit back and laugh ourselves silly. Come on, a _fox_ and a _bunny_ trying to date? This will be hysterical-"

Judy passed around the corner of the building and finally couldn't hear them anymore. She was a mess of emotions. It was like all the stress from the day had come together at that instant and finally boiled over. She was angry and hurt, she wanted to go somewhere and cry and she wanted to go back and beat Gideon's head into the ground.

She tried to relax her clenched paws, her short stubby claws digging painfully into her palms, and took a few deep breaths. She looked up and took one more breath, involuntarily this time and froze, staring.

Nick was sleeping, leaned up against _her_ tree. His paws where on his book bag in his lap and his head was drooped forward in the cutest manner. A few rays of sunshine were occasionally making their way through the leaves and played across his reddish orange fur, as the light breeze fluttered tuffs of it, making it seem to shine with bits of gold. He looked so peaceful and _handsome_ …

Her heart started beating again at a thunderous pace and she gasped for more air, while her mind seemed to malfunction. She couldn't stop looking at him. She was half way towards him by the time she realized she'd moved and froze.

_What am I doing? It's not like I even want him to be my fiancée. It's not like I even like him._

She took another involuntary step, before stopping, her heart still pounding away so hard she could hear it like drum beats in her ears.

 _I want someone like the ones from my stories._ And another part of her brain seemed to reply, _He sure could be on the front cover of one of those stories, and he did stand up to Gideon for you. If what Sharla says is true he certainly_ _ **likes**_ _you._

She ignored that thought, but still couldn't look away from him. _Beautiful._ The thought kept rolling through her mind along with a few other similar descriptions. She quickly looked around and saw no one; there were no windows on this side of the school building either.

She quickly took out her phone and made sure the sound was off before taking a picture. And then a few more. She put her phone away and was about to leave when a slight gust tussled his fur, and her eyes jammed looking at it flutter, showing the softer looking undercoat in his longer fur.

_Is that as soft as it looks?_

She looked around again, noting there was still no one in sight.

_I shouldn't. It would be rude and I need to get going._

But despite everything she found herself next to the sleeping fox. And as she lost her inner war she found herself reaching out one paw and lightly running it through the fur along his muzzle.

The outer coat was thicker and coarser than any bunnies, but the under coat, _oh Carrots_ , the under coat was sooo soft. She ran her paw along his muzzle again and the froze when his nostrils flared as he seemed to sniff the air, before turning his head a bit and nuzzling his muzzle into her small paw; she could see his lips pull back into smile and heard a low sound, almost like a low rough growling purr come from him.

Judy's heart kicked into overdrive, feeling like it might just break from how fast it was going. She quickly extracted her paw, and the gorgeous sleeping fox whimpered ever so slightly.

_Oh carrots, Oh Carrots!_

She fled. Her ears and face flushing hard.

_He's just some fox, some annoying fox you don't even know and have never met. He's just some fox…_

* * *

Nick didn't dream much. He usually slept like a rock, and when he did dream they were always hazy and hard to remember after he awoke. But he was dreaming one of the few familiar dreams he become accustom to over the years. He could never remember it fully but despite the murkiness and differences they always seemed to be the same.

He was a young kit again, when everything in the world seemed larger. And he was running and playing with someone, another kit, slightly smaller than himself. They were laughing and smiling and having fun; they'd play and go steal cookie dough batter before fleeing paw in paw as his mother chased them with a carrot apron and a big wooden spoon, smiles across their faces.

He could never remember the other kit, and sometimes they seemed to change. He once thought it was a vixen from the year below him, but some of the features never quite matched. The ears seemed a touch to long and the tail a bit too short, and no matter who he though the other kit might resemble they always had gray fur and strikingly beautiful eyes.

As the dream went on, the other kit seemed to be slightly clearer this time, less of a blur and now they had a scent, a very distinct scent, a scent that filled him with happiness. He knew he should know this scent, did know this scent, but in the dream he simply couldn't place it.

The dream shifted to another familiar setting. This time it was a party. There had been snow, and he always remembered being bored, like it had taken _forever_ to get there. And then _she_ was there with him. The same kit and she was leading him by the paw as he smiled. And the dull party would come alive with color and mirth and music. It would always fill him with more joy than even holidays were supposed to have. They would play together and eat cookies and drink soda. He had never had found the joy or fun with anyone else like he had in his dream, but then again it was just a dream. And life could never be as good as a dream, he had learned that the hard way.

His thoughts had started dampening the joy and color of the dream, but then _the_ smell came back stronger. That scent, that seemed to touch a spot deep inside of him, and made him want to rub his nose into it until it overwhelmed everything else. That scent was like a warm paw stroking his muzzle and he wanted desperately to nuzzle into it.

The dream flared back to color, more brilliantly and brighter than it ever had been. And a soul deep contentment and happiness seemed to bubble up inside of him. The other kit was leading him by the paw again as she pulled him along with determination. And in the dream while the smaller kit was still hazy he could clearly see her pink dress with snowflakes stitched along the hem. She let go of his paw, and he couldn't help but whimper at the loss of contact. But then she twirled about hands behind her back to look at him. And even not being able to clearly see her he couldn't help but think how cute and beautiful she was. She would always stand there, looking at him shyly before he would notice the mistletoe hanging above her, and he could feel the familiar blush build up again. Like always in the dream he would look to both sides to make sure no other kits were watching, and then hesitantly lean forward to-

HOOONK

The school bus horn startled Nick awake and before he had quite recovered from the sudden jolt his phone alarm started going off. He quickly silenced it and looked up to see other students coming out to line up in front of the buses that had just pulled up. He noticed his paw was on the side of his muzzle, and wondered why, before he sighed and rubbed it a few times before getting up. He was trying to remember the dreams but they were fading away like always. He wished that those dreams could be more than figments of his imagination, and sighed again as he headed toward the lines for the buses.


	6. Chapter 5 – Only Way Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heh, this was too good to hold onto (Or even wait for the proofreader to recover from excess holiday cheer) It's shorter than normal but I think it's good as it is.
> 
> Disclaimer: Disney what is taking you so long? It's *Klaxon sounds going off* "Man your stations! This is not a drill! Man…" oh crap, got to go.

Judy had used the walk home from the school to try and calm down. She was no longer blushing and her breathing had steadied out as she walked; her heart rate was also back to normal, mostly. Errant thoughts about _the_ fox and the pictures on her phone were enough to make it beat faster though.

She was half considering asking her mom to take her to the doctors as there was obviously something wrong with her. She might not like Gideon or Travis at all but they'd been right about one thing, a fox and a bunny in a relationship was a ridiculous idea. Maybe the reactions were just old instincts finding their way back up to the surface, foxes had hunted bunnies tens of thousands of years ago before mammals fully evolved.

Maybe that was why she couldn't get her mind off the sensation of the fur of his muzzle and how that kiss… _No, not a kiss, Not a kiss at all_ … just… how his lips had felt when his mouth had _accidentally_ hit hers. Old instincts, that was the reason she couldn't stop thinking about it, why it seemed to reminder her of something she should have known. It was because that fox's muzzle and his teeth were bringing old instincts up to the surface.

She nodded her head willing to accept this explanation. It made far more sense than anything else. It was a completely _logical_ explanation. Maybe even explained his sniffing, there weren't as many bunnies in the city, the smell was probably new for him, that was all.

For her, she could compare her rectos to how Gideon's musky scent always put her a bit on edge. Just old instincts. But Judy was not one to let instincts rule her. She didn't care if it was about love or fear, she would do what she wanted, and so she would ignore all these odd reactions from her instincts.

A small part of her mind noted that though she could barely tell the two foxes scents apart, her reaction to Nick's scent hadn't been the same as it was for Gideon's. In fact, it had actually been comforting, almost like…

She squashed the thought. Sometimes there were outliers, bits of data that just didn't match up. It was to be expected, it didn't mean her explanation was wrong. It was probably the fact that his scent was ever so slightly _different_ from Gideon's that made it… comforting.

Anyways it didn't matter, she would only be friends with the new fox only if she wanted to, not because of instincts and any comparison to Gideon. He'd been annoying, rude, snarky, irritating… she went on listing descriptions for a full two minutes before she ran out.

But then again… he had apparently stood up for her when it mattered…

She still couldn't believe that he actually liked her, not in that way. That would be impossible. _If_ Sharla was right, then he had probably just been interested in being her friend, _just_ a friend.

Maybe… maybe… she'd give him a second chance, just a chance. Maybe they _could_ be friends… if they were going to be stuck together in some stupid marriage… Well, it _would_ be nicer to be stuck with someone she was friends with. It might be a loveless marriage but she'd never been to interested in any of that anyway, she reassured herself. She had a few of her secret romance books to take care of any small romantic pangs that had ever or would ever appear, and she had her dream. That was all she _really_ needed anyway.

And if what Sharla had said _was_ at least partially true, he'd support her in that. Judy smiled thinking about that, as she turned off the road and headed down the drive way to the front door of her home. They school bus had passed her a few minutes ago and her siblings were moving about the house and farm with their normal hustle and bustle. She might just have even had a skip in her step as she passed. Maybe the future wasn't so gloomy, she might have a new friend who'd supported her and be there for her, _and_ a rather good looking one at that, the back of her mind reminded her, one with warm soft fur and sweet kisses…

She banished _those_ thoughts and opened the front door.

"You wouldn't believe it!" Jessica's voice came from the middle of a crowd in the large front entrance of their house. "Judy's completely in love with the new transfer student from _Zootopia_!"

Her dad's voice spoke up, with more excitement and happiness than she'd heard in a long time, "Are you sure Jessica? This isn't just some rumor all the other kits started? Is it just one sided? What was the Buck's reaction, does he like her too?"

"Dad, they were caught bey Mr. Weston in the Janitors closet _making out_! And he stood up to Gideon Grey in the lunch room, said loud enough for everyone to hear that Grey better leave her alone because he loves her!" Jessica said excitedly.

Judy wasn't sure if the heat was from anger or embarrassment, but she started shoving her way through the crowd to Jessica.

The was a "Oh, my" from her mother. And her father sound like he was starting to cry and said joyously, "I knew it would happen Bonnie, see we just had to be patient! This is exactly what we've been waiting for! Now we just need to call your brother, the lawyer. Jessica, is there any proof that they're in love with each other? And what's he like? What's his name?"

"Dad, there are _pictures_!" Jessica said excitedly and snickered a bit, "He's not quite what I would have expected, I guess you could say he's a bit exotic, being from the big city and everything and since he's-"

Judy finally shoved her way to the center, "What is going on here?!" Her sister looked at her, her face taking on an almost apologetic look, "I thought I asked you to keep quite Jessica!" she said angrily.

Jessica tried to look indignant but ended up still looked guilty, "I haven't said anything they wouldn't have found out anyway!" she said in her defense.

Their dad stepped over, tears running down his face and hugged Judy, "Oh, Jude, don't worry. This is wonderful news! Absolutely wonderful! We never told you much about your arranged marriage because that was the only way we could possibly get you out of it!"

Judy went stiff and the crowd of her excited siblings went nearly still and silent. Besides the rampant rumors from earlier today, and not all of them were siblings in highschool, they had never heard anything about Judy's arranged marriage.

"Wait," Judy said, trying to fight off the shock of the sudden shift, "what do you mean 'get out of it'? Why would you have made the arrangement to begin with if you were trying to get me _out_ of it."

"It was my fault, Jude." Her father said tears still leaking out, "We… we were in a bit of a desperate situation back when you were still very little, and I was being so stubborn that I was about to drive the farm bankrupt. The marriage arrangement between us and the Wilde's forced me and Mr. Wilde to work together," he seemed to grind his teeth a bit, even through the joyful tears, "I _still_ don't like that _fox,_ " there were a number of surprised noises coming from the crowd by this point, some starting at the name 'Wilde', others at 'fox', "even if he's proven to be a decent business partner, its just… just…

"Oh, Judy," her mother cut in patting her dad on the shoulder. She seemed a bit apologetically but happy for her and her first supposed love interest, "This was all before that awful incident with Gideon Grey at the fair, Mrs. Wilde and I didn't see any other way to get them to work together. And you seemed to get along with their son so well as a kit, you two were practically inseparable."

Judy gasped, "I _knew_ him?"

Her mom nodded, "Only for a bit when you were very young, they couldn't travel out here much, and neither of you seem to remember any of that. _And_ that was all before the incident with Gideon Grey, not to mention something happened to the Wilde's son with some prey kits around then too. We agreed that it might be best to just let you two grow up without knowing about the arrangement. We thought that after something so traumatizing that it might not be a good idea to try forcing you two together. That way since you two didn't know the details or each other, if either of you fell in love and wanted to get married to someone else, you could. It's the only way to possibly nullify the contract."

Her mom looked at her startled face and gave her a smile, "It all seems to have worked out in the end, though."

Her father was still crying happily and hugging her, and saying, "I _knew_ it would, I knew it…"

"Yes, dear. It seems to have worked out for the best. If one of you hadn't found somebody by the time you both turned 18 then we would have had to tell you both. We wanted to give you two as much time as possible, because once you two are both aware of the contract and have met… well we don't have to worry about that now."

Judy's mind was spinning, her birthday was in February, and she'd bet Nick was older than her. She mumbled numbly, almost not realizing she spoken, "A-and if I wasn't in love with anyone else…"

Her dad spoke up, "You would have had to marry that _fox_ three months afterwords,"

_3 months, that… that would be right around graduation!_

"But now. You. DON'T!" He nearly shouted in joy and actually laughing as he turning to Jessica, "Come on Jess! I don't care how exotic this buck is, I want to see my future son-in-law!" The watching crowd shifted its attention to Jessica, now dead silent. Some had looks of shock and concern while others showed unknowing enthusiasm.

Jessica, now looked flustered and she rubbed her hindpaw on the ground a few times, "Um, well…"

"Come on, come on! Where are these pictures! What's he like? What's his name? We've got to start making wedding plans!" Their dad shouted happily.

Jessica, seeming to be in nearly as much of a numbed state as Judy. She slowly, hesitantly brought her phone out. "His, um… his name is Nicholas…" she slowly, even a bit fearfully, turned the phone around to show the picture of Judy and Nick on the floor of the janitor's closet, limbs entwined, muzzles together, "Nicholas… Wilde."


	7. Chapter 6 – Emotional Overload

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo I'm not one for angst and hurt and all that jazz. This chapter is just more, um, emotional I guess than just the normal fluff. But life isn't all cookies and coffee, sometimes it's a bit messy, and sometimes issues need to come to the surface before they can get fixed. So I hope you enjoy this chapter because it and the next couple of chapters should be one interesting ride! Beware potentially Lethal levels of fluff are possible in the future.
> 
> Disclaimer: Wait? That was the Disney rescue team? What do you mean 'Good shooting', THAT WAS MY ESCAPE I JUST SHOT DOWN!

"Nicholas… Wilde." Jessica finished saying as she held the phone out for their dad to see.

Judy heard a sudden "Oh!" from her mother clearly through the silent crowd of bunnies all focused on their father.

Stu Hopps glanced at the phone screen still excited, almost like he hadn't heard a word Jessica had said.

He actually laughed again before shouting happily, "Exotic, eh? Ha, well I've never seen a buck with fur like that! We'll have to have him over for dinner! You said he just transferred out here? Where's he staying? Maybe he can stay here? Yes, yes that would be perfect," Their dad turned excitedly and pointed at one of Judy's brothers, "George, go clean up that spare bedroom next to Judy's! Come on, Come on we don't have all day. Go on George!"

George opened his mouth to try and say something, failed, tried again, and still unable to speak gave up. He closed his open mouth turned and hurried off.

"Now, who is this boy staying with? Nicholas Wilson was it? I'll sure Mr. Wilsons won't mind us housing his nephew, their house is too small for their family anyway-"

Bonnie Hopps moved forward and placed her paw on their dad's shoulder. "Dear, I think Jess said Nicholas Wilde."

"Did she now?" The crowd of bunnies held its breath waiting for an outburst or explosion, but their dad just laughed and patted their mothers paw jovially, "Who would have imagined a buck with that name?" he laughed again, "Well that's Serendipity at work for you right there! Must mean they're meant for each other!" he turned back to Jessica and asked with a huge smile on his face, "Which family is this buck staying with? You said right at the beginning that he transferred out here and is staying with relatives."

Jessica squirmed for a second before answering, "He, uh… that's right… he's staying with the… Greys." Their dad stopped his near bouncing and his face seemed to freeze, still with its huge grin. "He's… um… Gideon's cousin." Jessica finished tentative, showing their dad the picture again.

This time, with everybody watching expectantly and with more than a bit of trepidation, he gave the photo more than a quick glance.

His ears started dropping like someone was letting the air out of a balloon, though his smile still seemed stuck in place. "The… Greys?... Nicholas… W-W-Wilde?" he half mumbled, half asked, and Jessica nodded cautiously.

His ears were all the way down now and his smile was starting to melt as well. " _Nicholas_ … _Wilde"_ he muttered again, eyes now wide looking at the picture and voice now full of recognition and disbelief.

"Stu?" Their mom asked seeming slightly worried. "Dear?"

He snapped out of his stupor and looked at his wife, then Jessica, then Judy for a long moment and then back at his wife. He took a long breath, and his shoulders straightened, a look of determination coming over him. He took their mom's paw and patted it gently, comfortingly before turning and hugging Judy.

"Don't you all worry, Steward Hopps is not one to give up." He said confidently, releasing Judy and walking over to a side table by the front door, the crowd parting before him.

"Dad?" Judy asked, confused at his actions. She had no idea what he was doing, she'd expected him to faint or maybe start crying, well crying for a different reason, not… not whatever he was doing now.

He pulled out a small pink can and clutching it in his paw as he headed out the door.

It was a few moments before anyone moved and then there was a mad scramble as _everyone_ tried to follow through the door. By the time Judy and her mother made it out the door they could hear the truck engine starting up.

" _Dad!?_ " Judy yelled, now very worried.

"Steward?" Her mom was calling next to her, in a _very_ concerned voice, "What _by Carrots_ do you think you're doing?"

The truck stopped for a second, the hay pitchfork haphazardly tossed in the back clattering as it fell into the bed of the truck.

"I'll take care of this, won't you all worry. Engaged or not, any mammal let alone a _fox_ that thinks he can waltz into town and start _taking advantage_ of _my daughter_ has another thing coming!" Stu said in a determined and now angry tone, looking at them through the open driver window "I'll teach that city slicker why you don't mess with a farmer's daughter! We'll see if they can have a wedding when that _fox_ is 3 counties over running away with a few holes in his tail and rear!" he finished in a near shout over the sound of the truck engine roaring as it kicked up gravel and sped away.

Everyone was standing still, shocked. Everyone but one now also angry rabbit.

"Oh, that foolish bunny!" he mom nearly shouted, "He _always_ pulls together his courage at the _worst_ times!" she turned and speared one of Judy's older brothers with a commanding glance, "David, did you finish working on the old truck?"

Her brother gulped, "Um, almost, I had it-"

"Go get it starter right this moment. We need to go get your father before he ends up pepper spraying himself."

"Yes, Mom!" David said and hurried of with their irate mother right behind him muttering, "… Lovable dope. Don't mess with a farmer's daughter? This'll end up worse than when he snuck into _my_ room after prom…"

Judy looked at her mother, then back at the road.

She was still mad at her sister for causing this whole mess. It was her rumors and gossiping that had thrown the spark into the hayloft, but that was a small concern next to the new growing anger in her. _No one thinks to ask my opinion on any of this? They're just going to rush off and decide my future for me without even asking_ _ **me**_ _? As a kit that was one thing but_ _ **not**_ _now! Not this time!_

Judy turned and started sprinting off toward one of the back fields.

The road swung far around past their closet neighbor's house and to the bridge over the creek before heading back toward town. She knew every bit of land around her home and the Greys house on the edge of town was only a mile away if she cut through the fields and woods.

* * *

Nick was pacing back and forth, his mind a completely mess of thoughts and emotions. It was almost impossible even for him to untangle and get an idea of how he actually felt, though disbelief was certainly near the top of the pile.

He'd said hi to his aunt when he'd gotten off the bus at the Grey's house and come to the dining room to call his parents after asking his aunt where would be best place to have a private phone conversation. He hadn't seen hide nor hair of Gideon since school, but that was fine by him. He hoped his cousin would stay out late tonight with his friends because seeing Gideon was the absolute last thing he wanted to do after everything he'd just been told by his parents.

"I… I just can't believe you _never even told me!_ " Nick said waving his arm, though there was no one in the room to even see the gesture.

"Oh, honey. We told you why we didn't-" but the voice of his mother over the phone was cut off by his father,

"Nick, this was all my fault, I'm the one who put you in this situation, but I swear I'll find some way to get you out of this so you don't have to marry some stupid country bunny."

" _Don't call her stupid, dad!_ " Nick snapped back without even thinking.

There was a moment of stunned silence before he started to apologize for his outburst, but his mom cut him off with an almost hopeful quality in her voice, "Nicholas, do… do you _like_ her?"

Nick could feel his ears heating up, "How am I supposed to know, mom?" he nearly shouted in complete exasperation, "I don't even _know_ her, and now I find out that I'm not only _stuck_ in an engagement, but I'm going to be _married_ in 9 months? You and dad dated for _three years_ before you decided you loved each other!"

There was excited murmuring on the other end of the line.

"See! Even if he was too young to remember her, he _still_ likes her!"

"you can't be sure of that!"

"Did he respond with a 'no' or some other denial?"

"He didn't say he _did_ like her either."

"That's a hundred times more enthusiasm than he's ever show toward any other girl, vixen or not!"

"still not a confirmation"

"and how long did it take _you_ to admit that you liked _me_ even though you spent every moment you could around me? Humm?"

"…"

"That's, right! This is almost like Karma herself is pushing them together. We need to call the Hopps right away."

"Dear, don't you think that this is a… little quick?"

Nick felt like someone had doused his head and ears in fire. He had his free paw over his face and his eye's closed trying to ignore everything that was being said in the whispered conversation on the other end of the phone. He'd just met her, and she was a _bunny,_ how could they expect him to know whether he _liked_ her. Sure, she was interesting, determined, and cute, but that didn't mean anything, there we're lots of girls like that, he could name five of the top of his head, there was Judy and …, well there _had_ to be lots of girls like that, and anyway the _last_ thing he wanted to think right now was dating and especially not his _parents_ courtship.

"Mom, dad." He said, tiredly "I've had a long and hard day, I think I'm going to go to bed early, ok?"

"Ok sweetie, make sure to eat a good dinner before you go to sleep."

"alright, good night, son."

Came the replies from the other end, before Nick closed the call. He sighed, this was just too much for one day. He opened the door and headed toward the stairs, hearing his aunt open the front door and greet his uncle as he returned from work.

He desperately needed something to take his mind off of, well, everything. Maybe one of his favorite books he had brought along might prove enough of a distraction, he thought and opened the door to the bedroom he shared with Gideon.

He took one step in before he stopped and stared.

His belonging were scattered over the floor, most of them torn up and ruined.

He numbly walked through the mess, and picked up his open suitcase before seeing the word 'Loser' scratched in one side and 'Leave' in the other.

Nick just stood their stunned unable to think until a voice spoke up from the doorway.

"You should just pack up now and go back home, creep. Nobody around here wants a dumb fox like you."

Nick turned to see Gideon in the doorway. He could understand that Gideon might not like him, or want to get along with him, but this!? Why would he go this far? Nick couldn't hold back the shout.

" _WHAT THE HELL, GID?"_

The was some startled noises from downstairs and they could both hear his aunt and uncle worriedly come rushing up the stairs, but rather than looking concerned, Gideon's resolve seemed to harden.

"I'm just telling you what everyone is thinking." He said, as his parents arrived, " _Nobody_ likes _you, Nobody_ wants _you,"_ There were some sharp gasp, and a 'Gideon!' from Gideon's parents, but he continued on, "You had to go trick the stupidest, weirdest girl, one of those dumb Hopps _bunnies_ to even get a girl to kiss you."

" _DON'T CALL HER STUPID!"_ Nick shouted, he felt like he was back at the pack meeting, but this time, with the memory there was just as much hurt as there was anger. He was shaking, and he put all his effort into making sure he didn't let that pain break out. He would _not_ _cry_ in front of his tormentor.

Gideon laughed right over his parent's stern demands for explanations, "Stupid? She's got to be the dumbest mammal alive to _like_ an idiot like _you!"_

It was too much for Nick, too much had already happened today. It didn't matter that his aunt had taken Gideon by the ear and his uncle was berating his cousin. He couldn't stay here another second, he would start tearing into Gideon if he did.

"FINE," he shouted and shoved past everyone out the door. "IF YOU WANT ME GONE THEN I'M GONE. IT'S NOT LIKE I EVEN WANTED TO BE HERE!" He was running before he realized it. He felt a single wet track make its way down his cheek before he slammed the front door shut on the calls and shouts from his aunt and uncle behind him as he kept running.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My proof reader is now trying to catch up so i need to write faster before he does


	8. Chapter 7 – Domestic Disturbance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY WILDEHOPPS 2017!
> 
> okay seeing navy guns used to celebrate new years was kind of cool. (P.S. Typo thumper and his wielder are distracted by the celebration so I'm gonna slip this by him)
> 
> This chapter was probably the hardest for me to write out of everything I've done, so I hope it came out okay.
> 
> Disclaimer: Um, So that whole incident about that team coming to rescue me, you're not going to try and sue me over that too are you? It was a complete accident

"Bunnyburrow Sheriff's office." Deputy Wolften answered as he picked up the phone.

"Oh howdy Mrs. Thompson, how can we help you today?" he took careful aim and tossed the dart in his paw… and missing the center of the dart board across the front room of the small town's police office.

"ahh ha… yes… sounds noisy… yes, ma'am…" he picked up another dart and started moving his paw back and forth taking aim.

"They do have a son in highschool, I'm not surprised that there might be a little…" he was about to toss the dart but stopped.

"oh… I see, the Hopps truck you said?... ah, huh… an argument?... oh… another fox Gideon's age? Yes, I thought the only other fox family was the Harolds too…no their kits are all grown up…"

The deputy took his feet off of the reception desk, "Yes that does sound a bit odd…yes, I agree… hum, really?…is there any fighting?... yes ma'am, that doesn't sound too serious but I'll tell sheriff Prongs. He'll probably want to drop by just to make sure everything is alright… yes, ma'am, I'll tell my mother you said hello, have a good evening Mrs. Thompson."

He hung up the phone and hollered over at the propped open office door. "I win, sir! Something actually happened today! I told you something would happen on the first day of school!"

"Alright, alright, I'll stop by the bakery tomorrow morning, now what's going on?"

"Best guess is something between 'the towns up and coming bunny cop to be' and the Grey's boy, seems that Mr. Hopps is waving a pitchfork having some sort of argument at the Grey's house. But Mrs. Thompson also said something about another fox boy running out of the house."

"Mrs. Thompson?!" sheriff Prongs said aghast, "Wolften! She's on our list of the towns top ten most dangerous gossips and rumor mongers!"

The wolf deputy grinned at the sheriff as the old buck came out of his office, settling his hat between his large antlers. "Yep, you want me to give you her untranslated version of events?"

"Oh, by the Great Prince, _No_! We'll be hearing watered down versions of whatever overblow story of this she spreads _for weeks_. Now, is the cruiser good to go?"

"Nope, Bill's still working on changing the oil, we'll have to take the truck." The deputy got up and checked to make sure that his tranq pistol belt was angled just right to give him that 'deputy in the wild west ready for a high-noon shoot out look', before following the sheriff out the back door. "And are you _sure_ you don't want to know? This time it was _really_ good. Something about kits eloping and family blood feuds. Sounded better than last year's highschool production of Romeo and Juliet."

The sheriff gave a snort, as he headed toward the truck, "Did I say weeks? This sounds like gossip of the month, I'll bet I'll be hearing about it at the bakery tomorrow morning. This might just raise Mrs. Thompson back to the top of the list." he turned his head to the boar working on the cruiser, "Deputy Craig, watch the fort till we get back!"

"Roger sir," the boar shouted back from under the car hood.

Sheriff Prongs closed the door to the police truck and started the engine. As he pulled out, he asked Wolften, "What do you think the senior class production this year will be?"

* * *

Judy was nearly gasping for air as she came sprinting out of the woods. That mile run would have probably set a new highschool record if it had been timed, but that thought didn't even cross her mind.

She saw her parents farm truck pulled up in front of the Grey's house and headed straight for it, but came to a skidding stop as she came barreling around the corner of the house right into the middle of an arguing crowd.

"We're is Nick?" she nearly shouted between breaths and then turned to her surprised looking dad, "You'd better not have hurt him!" she shot him a glare too and placed her paws on her hips, standing straight even while still breathing hard. Her dad was on one side near the truck holding his pitchfork in one paw and the fox-away pepperspray can in the other, while directly on her other side was Mr. Grey holding a cellphone, and behind him an upset looking Gideon was being held back by the scruff of the neck by his mother looking like a kit who'd gotten caught stealing from the cookie jar.

There was silence for another second before everyone seemed to speak at once.

"I haven't even had a chance to run that scoundrel off!" came her dad's still angry reply,

While Mr. Grey, gave a mad, "The only one going to get hurt is some overzealous farmer!" and a voice from the phone he was holding said exasperatedly, "Who was that? What's going on _now_?", and Mrs. Grey gave a surprised, "Judy?"

But out of all the noise, the remark that caught her attention was Gideon's.

He laughed before he said cuttingly, "I did your dad a favor and already ran your _fiancée_ off! Figures you'd have to have an arranged marriage to get anyone to go near you!"

She went stiff, but before she could respond she hear her dad say, "Only damn thing that hooligan has ever done right!"

Everyone else started arguing and shouting again. Her dad was shaking the pitchfork and using it to gesticulate while Mr. gray did the same thing brandishing the phone to the confused and mad voice of whoever was on the other end of the call. Gideon started snicker and Mrs. Gray was trying to split her attention between chastising him and calming down her husband.

She looked around and couldn't see any sign of Nick as the argument became louder. It was like she wasn't even there.

"SHUT IT, ALL OF YOU!" she yelled as she lost her temper.

Everybody went silent.

"Where. Is. Nick?" Judy asked glaring at each of them but nobody gave her an answer. She heard another vehicle pull up but she didn't give it the slightest bit of attention.

Marching over to Gideon, she asked anger still flooding her voice, "What did you do to Nick?"

Gideon despite his mother's hold on him managed to sneer back, "I just showed him that nobody wants an idiot like him around. I even helped you," He continued despite his mother's angry hiss of 'Gideon!', "Saved you from making more of a fool of yourself than you already are!"

Judy's dad chimed in, "See Judy! _Foxes_ can't even do something decent without being contemptuous sly predators waiting for the right moment to bite you in the back!"

Judy turned to look at her dad, "Your just as bad as he is!" she shouted at him, while jabbing Gideon with her finger. "I don't care if Nick is a _fox._ That doesn't make his some sort of bad mammal! You were the one who got me engaged to him and now you're trying to run him off, and _you_ are calling _him_ untrustworthy? Nick's done nothing to deserve that kind of treatment! I barely know him and he's been more supportive of me than almost anyone else! He hasn't told me to give up on my dreams, _he_ has at least stood up for me!" she turned back to Gideon and jabbed him in the chest again, "And you Gideon, you are nothing but a bully and a jerk! I've known Nick less than a day and I can see he's a hundred times better than _you_. Every time I've ever tried being nice to you, you just act like more of a _jerk_. For all his stupid teasing and jokes Nick at least knows how to be nice! Unlike you, I'd take him as a friend any day!"

Gideon laughed at her, "You think you could actually be friends with him? Engaged or not, married or not; You, a _bunny,_ think you can be friends with a _fox_?"

Judy wanted so badly to punch Gideon right then, but she held herself back. As much as it might make her feel better it wouldn't do any good. She turned and looked at everyone. Her Mom and brother where now there, standing in front of their old truck, which had steam coming out from under the hood.

She started marching away still so mad she wanted to kick something, and snarled over her shoulder, "Yes, _Gideon_ , I _do_ think I can be friends with a _fox_. It's because I don't care that he's a _fox_. I wouldn't care whatever type of mammal he was!" She ran her gaze over the entire crowd, "If _Nick_ isn't welcome here then neither am _I_!"

She turned the corner of the house losing sight of the silent crowd, and picked up her pace. She still didn't know how she felt about Nick being her fiancée. That still was just too… her heart seemed to jump and beat faster just thinking about it; She didn't know _what_ it seemed like. She barely knew him for Carrots Sake. But she did know she wanted to be his friend. She was sick and tired of people telling her what she could and couldn't do, just because she was a bunny, tired of them making assumptions and decisions for her. And she bet Nick felt the same way.

Judy didn't care what others thought, at that moment she didn't even care that she would probably be forced to marry him. Judy had already known she'd have to marry someone, and so what if that just ended up being a fox?

She was going to be friends with Nick because _she_ wanted to. And for right now _she_ was going to go find _her_ friend because _she_ had decided to. Everything else could wait until afterwards.

Judy didn't have any idea of where to look so she just kept moving. Her anger was finally starting to ebb away, but as it died down it left behind painful feelings of hurt and disappointment. Everything that her father and Gideon had said seemed like needles poking her heart.

* * *

Nick was watching as the sun started dipping toward the tree tops across the field. The weather had seemed to shift to match his mood, the bright and warm autumn day had picked up a colder breeze as the afternoon turned to evening and he watched the sun make its slow progress down beyond the trees.

He didn't have the faintest idea of what to do now. He had shut his phone of not wanting to talk to anyone, particularly his parents. He'd have to go back eventually, he knew that. but the idea, he shook his head and closed his eyes, the idea of going back and having to be around Gideon all night was unbearable.

He leaned back against the oak tree by the side of the school, he was half way considering just sleeping here, it wasn't like he even had anything spare changes of clothes left at his aunt and uncle's house.

There was a sound of crunching leaves and his eyes popped open just in time to see Judy come around the tree into view.

"Nick? Is that you?"

"Who else Carrots?" he replied making sure to sound cheery, glad his voice was steady like always.

She had her paws behind her back and her ears down, looking a bit hesitant.

"I'm sorry about not believing you earlier today Fluff," he said filling the silence, as he looked back forward, "I talked to my parents and… they filled me in on a few details. It… it's just a tinny bit of a surprise to walk into your new highschool and run into your fiancée," he gave a short laugh at that, "when you didn't even know you were engaged, let alone…" he just gestured between himself and her. "the whole differences thing."

She shuffled her foot, "I, um, probably could have handled that better myself. Umm… Do, you, uh, mind if I sit down?"

Nick shrugged and scooted over, and she came and sat down next to him also looking at the setting sun.

"So, what are you doing back here at school too?" he asked after a while.

"I was… actually looking for you. I, uh, sort of went by the Grey's house."

Nick winced and could feel his ears flattening. "Heard about me running off then?"

"Actually, I interrupted an argument and yell at both Gideon and my Dad, before _I_ ran off."

Nick couldn't help but chuckle a bit more. "Is this the spot everyone comes to when the run off then?"

She shook her head, "No, just my favorite spot near town. There's an even better one out past my family's farm though."

There was another silence as the sun dipped lower.

Nick eventually broke it, "So what about this whole arranged marriage thing?"

This time it was Judy who shrugged, "For right now I'm going to ignore it." she bumped his shoulder, "We can't change anything about that, but… I was…," she glance up at him a bit shyly, "I was kind of hoping you'd want to be my friend."

Nick looked back down at her, not sure what to think. They had only just met, were stuck in some crazy pre-arranged marriage, and had both just run off after having fights with their families, and she was a _bunny_ and he was a _fox._

She fidgeted before continuing, speaking a bit faster "I know everybody already thinks it's weird, and with the whole marriage deal, but if you wanted-"

She trailed of after he bumped her shoulder.

"Sure, carrots." He said, and she looked up at him and smiled. Nick felt his throat tighten with a lump of emotion and his heart beat a bit faster as he looked at that smile, so he changed the subject not wanting to dwell on that mess of emotions that smile caused.

"Why was your dad at my aunt and uncles?" he asked.

Judy, groaned and flopped back against tree. "Because my big mouthed sister went home and shoved _that_ picture right in my dad's face." Nick pressed his ears flat as he felt them starting to burn just thinking about _that_ picture. But those thoughts made him notice how she smelled again, and how it seemed so familiar and comforting.

"He went charging off spouting something about you taking _advantage_ of me." She rolled her eyes, and smiled again at Nick's scoff.

A breeze rolled across the field and Judy shivered a bit as it passed, her shirt and jeans not up to warding off the chill. Nick still felt fine with his longer fur, and he debated what to do for a second as he wasn't wearing any more than her.

 _Screw it,_ he thought, _it isn't like there's anybody here to see and I can't just let her freeze._

He scooted a bit closer to her and wrapped his arm around he shoulders. After a surprised second, she leaned into him, and Nick couldn't help but lean over and breathe in her scent again.

Maybe, just maybe, things would work out, he thought as he looked back at the setting sun.

* * *

_'~I shot the sheriff, but I did not shoot the deputy~'_

"Wolften?" sheriff Prongs askes as he drove toward the Grey's house.

_'~I shot the sheriff, but I did not shoot the deputy, oh no~'_

"Ya, boss?" the wolf across from the old buck asked happily as he hummed along to the song.

The old sheriff took a deep breath making sure he was calm. Hell, this was something he would have found funny back when he was Wolften's age, he could even remember pulling a few stunts like this himself.

"Why is this the first song on your favorites play list?" he asked calmly.

"Oh this Marley singer is great. Never though a Bobcat or any feline could sing, but he sure can. Very catchy tune too." Deputy Wolften answered, and then started singing along to the song.

_"So I shot, I shot him down, I say,_

_I shot the sheriff, but I did not shoot the deputy!"_

Sherrif Prongs took another deep breath. The damndest thing was that the song _did_ have a catchy refrain, but he'd cut off his antlers before he started humming along to it in front of his smirking deputy.

"Wolften," he said instead.

"Ya?, ~ _but I did not shoot the deputy! Oh no! Oh no!"_ Wolften replied still singing along.

"Turn off the damned music."

"Sure, Sheriff." The deputy said his smile even wider, and shut off his phone. There was blessed silence for 3 seconds and then the deputy started hummin the tune to the song.

"Are you trying to get yourself assigned to every shit detail I can think up, or is this some sort of office bet?" Prongs asked trying not to groan.

"Thank you sir!" the wolf said jubilantly, "I knew you were still the smartest officer around these parts. you just won me 20 bucks, no pun intended, by figuring that out."

This time he did groan.

"Wolften, I'm officially revoking your right to joke for the-" The sheriff stopped speaking as they came around the corner and saw the Grey's house, "What in woods is going on here?" he said instead.

He pulled the police truck up behind the two other trucks parked in front of the house and got out followed by his deputy who was now strutting more than walking next to him, like he was some old western gun slinger. At least Prongs knew he wouldn't try spinning his Tranq pistol on his finger, well not after the humiliation the rest of the police department had put him through after he'd pulled that stunt and tranqed himself.

"Evening, everybody," The sheriff call as he walked up the deputy at his side, "everything alright here?"

Mrs. Hopps and Mrs. Grey along with a somewhat subdued Mr. Grey, who was holding up a phone, seemed to be having a rather animated discussion while one of the Hopps older boys hung back leaning against one of the trucks. But the oddest part was that an abashed looking Mr. Hopps was sitting on the front steps of the house next to the very unhappy and sullen looking Gideon. If it had just been the youngster, Sheriff Prongs would have assumed that they had just gotten grounded by their parents. He took another look at the group and Mrs. Hopps in particular.

On second thought that might be exactly what had happened.

…

It took more than a few minutes to get an understandable explanation of what had happened. Sheriff Prongs handed the can of pepper-spray Mrs. Hopps had given him to his deputy. He agreed with her that her husband was far more likely to spray himself than anyone else and was glad to get it away from him before it caused trouble; he might know how to use a pitchfork but from what everyone was saying he'd apparently been waving the pepper-spray around while holding it upside down.

"So let me see if I have this straight," the sheriff said, "The Grey's nephew, one Nicholas Wilde, moved out here and is staying with you all," he nodded at the Greys, "while attending his senior year at Bunnyburrow High. Your nephew and son had a fight after your son destroyed his suitcase and clothes, after which he left. Mr. Hopps then arrived upset after having heard about your daughter, "he nodded at Mrs. Hopps, "hooking up with the Wilde's boy at school, even though their already engaged. Mr. Hopps got in an argument with Mr. Grey, who was on the phone with the Wildes, while looking for their son since he was being the epitome of the stereotypical upset farmer over his daughter. Said daughter arrived and chewed out the overreacting bunny and the temperamental teenager before storming off to find her fiancée, during which Mrs. Hopps arrived with her son. Afterward Mr. Hopps and Gideon were chastised and told to sit and think about what they did while you all started trying to figure out how to fix this whole mess. Does that sound about right?"

There were a number of nods and 'yes's including one from the Wildes who were still listening in via Mr. Greys phone.

 _And Mrs. Thompson just secured the top gossip spot for the rest of the year_ , Prongs couldn't help but think.

"Well let's start dealing with the issues then" he said instead.

"Does anyone want to press charges of any kind?" He raised his voice some, making sure the both of the mammals on the porch steps could hear, particularly the youngster. "waving the pitchfork and pepper-spray could easily be argued as threatening behavior and there is also the matter of intentional property destruction, that one is pretty serious."

Both of the mammals and especial the young fox looked startled and a little fearful at that.

The group in front of him shook their heads and there was a 'We don't think that will be necessary' from the phone. Prongs had expected as much, and was actually fairly happy with their decisions, and a bit of a scare would hopefully make them think before acting on emotion next time and this way he didn't have to do nearly as much paperwork.

"ok, that does make things easier, but" he looked at the Grey's, "I'd suggest having Gideon talk to the school consular. I know teenagers can be a bit rebellious, but I don't want to see anything happening to him. Mrs. Rivers has a full degree in psychology and is a certified councilor. She's helped quite a few of the towns kits deal with different issues that come along with growing up."

"Thank you, sheriff, we were already thinking that might be a good idea." Mr. Grey said, "I don't know what got into him."

"He's a teenager Mr. Gray," Sheriff Prongs shrugged, as if it wasn't all that unexpected, "but he'll be a young adult soon, and something like this could get him in much bigger trouble then. Again, I'd talk to Mrs. Rivers, she's very good with helping youngsters with stuff like this. "Now," He turned to Mrs. Hopps, "I trust I can leave your husband in your charge?" He asked.

"Yes you can. I'll make sure this doesn't happen again, Sheriff." Mrs. Hopps said with a stern glance in the direction of the porch.

"We'll that takes care of that then," the sheriff grinned at the little matriarch, "I haven't had a single issue with him or his Saturday poker gettogether ever since I dropped him back off with you after the row at the pub a few years ago, so I'll leave him in your paws."

"Sherriff?" a worried female voice came from over the speaker of the phone, "We've tried calling Nicholas but the phones been going straight to voice mail, we're starting to get worried about him."

The sheriff tapped his hoof a few times thinking, before replying, "I'm pretty sure that they'd be alright, but we'll go find them. This must have been a stressful day for both of them." He looked back at the Greys, "Do you think there will be any more issues between your son and his cousin since he's staying here?"

Mrs. Gray and Mrs. Hopps looked at each other, before Mrs. Wilde's voice came over the phone line again, "We've all talked this over and think we've come to an arrangement that should fix that problem."

"Okay then. Deputy Wolften!" he called over his shoulder and the wolf came over from where he'd been talking to the older Hopps boy.

"Yes, sir, Are we headed back for the night ?" he asked,

"Almost, Wolften, almost." He grinned a bit, "Do you still have Judy Hopps scent from her internship at the station?"

The wolf nodded, "Sure, she was there all summer."

"Perfect, I'll bet you two bakery runs, that she'll lead us right to the other runaway." The Sheriff said now grinning fully.

"Oh, you are so on, Sir!" The wolf said enthusiastically.

…

It actually took longer than Sheriff Prongs had anticipated for Wolften to get a good trail on the Hopps girl, and it was starting to get dark. He hoped that the kits had been smart enough to go ahead and head back now-

"Getting close sir!" Wolften said excitedly, before sniffing the air a few times and beelining in the direction of the school.

The old buck kept up with the wolf, but it was far harder than it had been a few years ago.

_Damn youngsters keep getting faster_

He shook his head with a sad smile as he breathed heavily, thankful the wolf had finally slowed. He could have retired a few years ago, but he loved his job and couldn't imagine just sitting around all day doing nothing. He just wished there wasn't so much running involved. Maybe he'd take a look at those funny two wheeled scooter contraptions the mall cops raved about. He could even get it painted with some racing flames, that might make it look less embarrassing-

His attention was brought back to the present as Wolford stopped in his tracks.

The sheriff came around the oak tree to see what the wolf was looking at before he stopped in his tracks too.

"Well I'll be pickled." Wolften finally muttered, "I know they said they were engaged, but it's another thing to see it."

Sheriff Prongs smiled, looking down at the sleeping fox and bunny leaning back against the tree. The bunny had turned to face the fox and snuggled into his side with the fox's muzzle laying on top of her head and his arm and tail wrapped around her.

"Come on Wolften, we'd better get them home."


	9. Chapter 8 – Where to Sleep

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yikes, this turned into a long chapter for this story. I actually though about splitting it but it just didn't work that way.
> 
> Also just for peoples general information this will remain a T rated story. My primary story 'Derailment' is toeing the line without quite being a lemon but you won't find that here. However, T from what I understand equals pg-13 which means that while there won't be a lemon scene behind a thin screen, any other normal stuff you would find in highschool scenes or Young Adult books is fair game. This means that things like snogging, mild swearing, highschool jokes about immature topics, and embarrassing conversations with parents or doctors about the birds, the bees, and the bunnies may happen. So ya, welcome back to highschool.
> 
> Disclaimer: The WildeHopps Navy posted a whole news report on the amazing defense against Disney's attempt to sabotage them and cited me directly. I just found out that I've been blacklisted from all Disney owned properties and companies. Damnit.

Judy was warm, more than just warm. She was warm and happy, surrounded by a comfortable and musky breeze. It seemed to encircle her, tickling her nose and she found herself as a small kit running out of her house paw in paw with another kit. Judy had never seen the other small kit before but she knew, just knew, that this was her best friend, that he would always be her best friend, that this kit was someone, someone she should be able to remember, someone familiar…

But as she ran with him laughing over their escape, the thoughts lost themselves amongst the dream and the warmth and the breeze. The late summer sun shone down upon the grass and fields as they raced and played. She couldn't ever remember having this much fun, being this happy and as they finished tussling and laughing over a silly argument and pilfered both blueberries and a carrot, they stole away with their snacks to the hill on the farthest side of the fields and sat under the old forest oak standing as the last sentinel watching over the surrounding land. She giggled as her best friend sniffed indignantly at her comment and snatched the last of the carrot eating it while she took the remaining blueberries in turn.

He huffed again as her giggles grew while he finished eating, and then they were rolling and laughing as he tried tickling her in revenge, but she had found his weak spot, tickling him under his arms and it wasn't long before she had him at her mercy sitting on him tickling, as he squirmed and finally called out for mercy. She smiled and leaned down.

'I'll stop if you promise me a kiss!'

'I can't kiss you, girls have cuddies!' He barely managed to gasp between laughs, and she tickled him again till he squealed, 'fine, Fine! You win!"

She smiled down smugly as he caught his breath, sitting on the larger russet furred kit.

'Well? I'm waiting.' She said, and he squirmed the inside of his ears going red, but then his embarrassment vanished as a grin appeared.

'You sure?' he asked, now with a gleeful smile and his tail thumped and she looked at him trying to figure out what game her best friend was playing at now.

'Of course!' she said confidently.

His grin widened, 'Well I did promise, but my dad said that since girls have cuddies if you kiss a girl then you have to marry her!' and then he leaned up making dramatic kissing sounds as she squealed and jumped back. It was only a moment longer and she was running around the tree squealing and laughing as he chased her still making awful smooching sounds. She circled the trunk again and jumped up into the old tire swing, laughing too hard to keep running while the motion of her jump sent the tire swinging.

_"Hopps, Wilde time to wake up."_

The tire swing rocked harder, swinging more, then again and again, with her squealing and laughing the entire time as the other kit pushed it. After the third push, he jumped and scrambled into the swinging tire and the next few moments were a blur of laughs, fake smooching sounds, and tussling bodies and fur as the swing continued to sway back and forth.

She tickled him again but she was too out of breath and dizzy to continue much more and collapsed on top of him surrounded by the tire's sun warmed rubber walls, still giggling as the tire's motion settled to gentle rocking.

'Is that really what your dad said?' she asked after a while, as she hugged him letting his warmth chase the dizziness away.

_"What's taking so long?"_

_"You want to try Sheriff? I tried nudging them and they just cuddled close together."_

'Yes' came a now shy response, and she felt him hug her back, 'I shouldn't kiss you, its… well… that's only something married mammals should do.'

She looked up and caught two emerald green eyes before they could look away, 'You're my best friend, right?'

There was a nod, his eyes never leaving hers, 'always.'

'You're going to be my partner on the police force when we grow up, right?' she asked.

Another nod, 'Yes'

'then why would I want to marry anyone else?' she said confidently even though she was blushing herself.

He looked away his tail limp and looking sadder than she'd ever seen him. It made her feel like her heart was breaking.

'because I'm a fox…' He mumbled looking dejected.

'So?' she asked and he looked back at her a bit shocked. She hugged him harder, 'I don't care what you are! I don't want anyone who isn't my best friend to marry me, and you said you're always going to be my best friend.'

_"Wilde. Hopps. Judy Hopps! Come on you can't sleep here all night."_

He was staring at her with a look of wonder, and she blushed harder. Then in a quick movement he sat up hugging her and squeezed her to him. She squeezed back and then watched as he reached out and with a claw extended carved a heart on the inside of the tire above them. he added a J inside then a plus and finally a N. before he looked back at her.

Her world seemed to shake as her heart swelled because of the way he looked at her.

_"Hopps, time to wake up"_

'Always' was all he said, and then she did something she'd only see her parents do to each other and their own kits. She leaned forward and rubbed her chin against him and she felt him rub his muzzle between her ears. The comforting musky scent was all around her, stronger now and she snuggled further into his fur.

_"Did they just?!"_

_"*snicker*, That's not getting them to wake up sheriff. It's a damn good thing they're already engaged."_

After a moment, she looked back into his eyes, those beautiful green eyes, her nose against his and he slowly tilted his head and kissed her. It was feather light, just his lips touching hers but her world seemed to shake at that kiss. Her heart was filled to bursting and the very world around them seemed to rock with each beat of her heart as he kissed her and she wished that moment could last forever.

* * *

"Hopps! Wilde! Wake! Up!"

Judy's eyes snapped open, as someone shook her. She blushed remembering the dream and then took in a breath filled with _that_ musky smell, and a few realizations hit her like chain lightening. First the warmth surrounding her was not her blankets from her bed but the limbs of a larger mammal. Second, that she couldn't see anything because she was snuggled into that mammal with her face buried in his fur. Third that, she _knew_ exactly who this mammal with that musky scent was. And last, that among all that musky scent surrounding her there was one spot that smelled different, one spot under her nose that smelled like her…

_Oh, Serendipity! I Didn't, please say I didn't_

She felt the mammal holding her stir as someone shook her again. Then right as he started to move, there was a bright light that lit up everything in her view, showing Judy the cream and russet fur she was snuggled into.

The fox holding her jerked at the light with a small cry of pain, and clutched her tighter.

"Ahh! What the? Who's there?" he said panicked and Judy looked up just as he looked down squinting away from the light.

" _Judy?!"_ he said in shock and confusion before snapping his head up squinting at the source of the light and going completely stiff before his fur bristled, "J-Jake?"

Nick sounded angry, dazed, confused, and scared. He clutched her to him and scrambled back away from the tree they'd been leaning up against, nearly shouting, "Jake!? What the hell are you doing out here? If you've got a problem, it's with me! Leave her alone, she's got nothing to do with-"

"Calm down kid!" came a stern voice Judy recognized as Sheriff Prongs', before another she recognized as Deputy Wolften spoke up.

"Sheriff, turn off the flashlight! You're probably blinding him."

The light shut off, but Judy could still feel the arms and tail around her shaking as they squeezed her protectively and the huge panicked breaths of his expanding and contacting chest under her.

The Sheriff spoke again, "Wilde, this is Sheriff Prongs and Deputy Wolften, there's nothing to worry about, just take a few breaths and calm down."

Judy looked up at Nick who was still breathing hard and squinting in the evening darkness. "Nick?" she asked worriedly.

He looked down at her and his arms tightened involuntarily.

"Nick, I know them, they're who they say they are." She said reassuringly. And he looked back down at her and blinked his eyes a few times before looking back up. She could feel his fur settling and his breathing calming.

"Um…" he started saying now sounding embarrassed, "I, ah…" he took in a breath seeming about to speak and then froze again. He took a sniff of the air, then another. Judy could see his eyes widening in a new type of panic. He leaned down, nose nearly against hers, causing her heart to suddenly start racing and sniffed before jerking with a yip. His nose shot to between her ears and took another sniff before he froze completely.

The deputy snickered before saying, "Well, I guess congratulations are in order."

* * *

Nick's mind was a mess as he sat in the back row of the police truck. He couldn't stop glancing over at Judy sitting across from him. He'd try looking out the window, at the floor, at the seatback in front of him but his eyes would always start wandering over across to the seat beside him. His eyes would inevitably meet hers and then they would both blush again and quickly look away.

The sheriff and deputy had said something about their parents worrying and taking them home for the night before hustling them off to where they'd parked the police truck. Nick could vaguely remember answering questions about Gideon, Jake, the ranger scouts back at his old school, and the fights that had gotten him sent out here, but his mind was stuck on the bunny next to him. The bunny that had a patch of fur on her head that smelled heavily of him. And if that wasn't enough, her scent kept wafting up from the ruff of fur under his neck. Every single breath brought a fresh reminder, and sent his mind into a fresh panic.

After everything that had happened today things had finally seemed like they might be settling down, there had finally been a ray of hope on the horizon. He'd made a friend, and they'd talked a bit deciding to simply ignore the arranged marriage, they could worry about that later and if anyone asked... well, it wasn't something they'd chosen, and it wasn't like arranged marriages _always_ worked out, even if theirs was stricter than most… but that wasn't the only thing they had to deal with now, no, they'd gone and _marked_ each other.

 _And how the hell did that happen? We were sitting under the tree and I had just put my arm around her to prevent her from freezing, it's not like I was cuddling with her! and then all I can remember is dreaming,_ he blushed violently just thinking back on that dream, _it's not like you just up and mark someone you'd just met while sleeping, even if you're dreaming about them... It's not like I've imprinted on her! when the hell would I have had the chance to do that today?!_

He took a deep breath to steady himself, and the inhale brought a fresh wave of that scent wafting up from his ruff. That complex, sweet scent, lighter and more subtle than his own musky scent, and every memory he'd had from today with _her_ raced through his mind.

The bus ride, home room, her leading him down the corridor. His eyes started drifting on their own accord. The closet, the feel of her lips, glimpses of her in other classes, her finding him under the tree, the feeling of his arm around her. His eyes traveled across the interior of the truck and onto a bunny sitting across from him, and to two lavender eyes peaking back at him.

How she felt, warm and comforting snuggled up against him as he held her. His ears pinned back burning and he tore his gaze away, looking back at the floor, out the window, anywhere else but at her as his heart hammered. He took a few shaky breaths and her scent hit him again, throwing his mind right back into turmoil as his eyes began to wander.

The truck stopped and the sheriff looked back saying, "Okay we're here."

Nick looked out and saw a farm house that looked like a cross between a building and a small hill with windows.

Judy shot him one last glance that Nick had no idea how to interpret before she suddenly unbuckled her seatbelt and bolted out of the truck. There was a twinge in Nick's chest, but it was lost among all the other thoughts tumbling around his head.

The sheriff and deputy got out but seemed to be waiting for something.

The deputy cleared his throat, and then after a few more moments asked, "You coming kid? Or are you just going to sleep there?"

Nick looked up and blinked owlishly. "W-What?" he asked.

The wolf sighed, "home, bed, sleep. Any of those ring a bell?"

Nick looked around confused, "Um… this isn't the Greys…"

_Karma! I don't want to go back to the Greys, to have to be around Gideon right now. I'd rather sleep anywhere else. There wasn't a single place that could possibly be worse. Sleeping out in the woods sounded better-_

The wolf sighed, "Your parents, the Greys, and the Hopps decided that it would be better for the Hopps family to house you considering the fight with Gideon and that you're already engaged to their daughter." The deputy said as if he was repeating something for the second or third time.

Nick just stared at him for a moment, then back at the house, burrow? then back at the wolf.

_no, no, No, NO. Karma would never be so cruel. What have I possibly done to deserve this?_

The wolf sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation, "Kid it's getting late, would you-"

The sheriff patted the deputy on the shoulder before reaching over and hitting the seatbelt release for Nick.

"You'll be staying here for the rest of the school year. Come on." The sheriff said and guided the stunned fox out of the truck and toward the door. "Mrs. Hopps and Mr. Hopps have already set up a room for you. I think you'll actually find it fairly pleasant, Mrs. Hopps is a very kind and caring mammal. She promised your parents that they'd treat you exactly like one of their own kits."

The stag opened the front door and guided Nick in, followed by the deputy. Judy who had been just inside the front door with her paws on her chest, breathing hard, gave a startled jump at their entrance and turned around.

"Nick?!" she blurted out in a surprised shout, "What are you doing here?"

The deputy groaned and muttered something, but all Nick caught was, '-teenagers being the death of him'.

The stag reached over and gave the wolf a whack on the back of the head and the wolf, after a startled 'ouch!', gave him an apologetic look.

The sheriff called out, "Mrs. Hopps? Mr. Hopps? We've brought your kits back." Before turning to Judy, "Your family has agreed to house Nicholas here for the rest of the school year."

Judy's ears shot straight up and then snapped back down and she gaped at Nick, "H-h-he, i-is staying h-here?!" she asked, her voice going high at the end as if strangled off.

The wolf started snickering, but immediately coughed into his paw, giving a guilty glance to the sheriff.

A matronly bunny hurried into the room followed by a larger, well more like heavier, bunny that looked like he was not having the best of days.

"Oh, thank you for finding them, Sheriff. We just got all the younglings put to bed and the older kits are finishing dinner. Would you two like to stay for a bite? There's plenty of food." The older female doe said.

"It's much appreciated Mrs. Hopps but we-" The sheriff started but the doe rolled right over him.

"Perfect, now come on over into the dining room. It's the least we can do after all the trouble we caused and for you finding our kits, now come on. There's even apple pie for desert," she said.

The sheriff looked like he was about to try protesting, but then sighed and with a 'Thanks Bonnie,' gave up as if ceding to an inevitable defeat. He lowered his hoof and moved off toward the door the bunnies had come through followed by a happy looking deputy whose wagging tail was ruining the tough as nails image he'd been trying for.

"Thanks, Mrs. Hopps!" the deputy said enthusiastically, "Best pies award at the fair 8 years running now right?"

"Go on in and eat, flattery will only get you seconds deputy. Now Nicholas," she turned to Nick who was still feeling overwhelmed, "I don't think you remember me but I'm Judy's mother. We had a little chat with the Greys and your parents and thought that with the issue with Gideon, and with you and Judy finding out about the marriage contract, that it would be best for you to stay here. That way you and her can at least get to know each other. We're going to talk to some lawyers to see what we can do in case you two don't want to get married but… well don't worry about that right now, "she didn't look very hopeful as she said this, "It'll be good for you two to get to know each other anyway."

She stopped and seemed to recollect her enthusiastic mood before continuing cheerfully, "Welcome to our home Nicholas, I hope you'll think of yourself as one of our family for the time being." she started forward towards him, but Judy, who hadn't been doing much besides gaping, gave a startled 'EEp', her ears shooting straight up and rushed over to Nick.

"Um, Thanks Mom!" she said with a voice filled with desperate fake cheer, "I, uh, I'll show Nick around! Yes," She grabbed his paw and started pulling him around her mother, "We, uh, I mean he would probably like to get a shower before dinner! I can show him where it is. Come on Nick."

"Oh, don't be silly dear." Mrs. Hopps said, moving to cut them off and direct them toward the dining room. "You two must be starving by now and Nick isn't messy at all. It's not like he's been working in the field all day and he won't even have any spare clothes till Mrs. Grey drops off what she can repair later tonight." She smiled warmly, "Now you didn't even give me a hug when you got home earlier and then you and Nicholas both went haring off and had us all worried."

Judy tried to stop and pull Nick back, looking desperate and cornered. He in turn, just realizing what her mother intended only managed one panicked look at Judy before her mom wrapped them up in a hug, one arm around Judy the other around Nicks lower back.

"Thank goodness you two are alright. We-" she stopped her nose twitching once then again.

Nick looked frantically between Mrs. Hopps, whose nose was now furiously twitching and Judy who had her eyes closed as if praying her mom would be struck smell-less.

Mr. Hopps who had been hanging back looking both unhappy and a bit ashamed started heading over to.

"Uhem, um, Nicholas. I would like to welcome you-" he started as if reciting something he'd been forced to memorize.

"YOU TWO MARKED EACH OTHER?!" her mother exclaimed in a shout.

Judy winced, Mr. Hopps looked like he'd just been struck dumb, and there was a clatter of dropped silverware from the dining room door.

"Mom, let me explain-" Judy started desperately but was cut off by Mr. Hopps

"No!" he said in despair, "You've got to be mistaken! They're not two little kits playing around at house or something! This is serious! They wouldn't-"

Mrs. Hopps seemed to get over her shock, "Stewart Hopps, I _know_ a scent mark when I smell one." She stepped back and gave the two of them a careful examination, "And looking back on everything I don't even know why I'm surprised. Meeting up at school after all those years apart and then immediately sneaking off to go make out? They probably recognized each other right away! And then with the Grey boy telling Nick that he can't be with her, and you running off to try and keep them apart? You remember what Mrs. Wilde told us right afterwards about their suspicions that he was already in love with her. And then the way Judy ran off? Just look at the way they're holding onto each other."

Nick's gaze followed her pointing finger to his paw still clasped with Judy's. he looked up and met Judy's horrified and embarrassed gaze with one of his own and they let go as if their paws were on fire. Nick felt his face burning as he looked down but didn't miss the red tinge under her short gray fur.

Bonnie rolled her eyes and looked at Mr. Hopps " _You_ don't think two young mammals in love with each other and thinking everyone was against it _wouldn't_ go running off to find and mark each other? After what happened with _us_? We should be glad they didn't attempt to completely elope and run away together like _we_ tried."

Mr. Hopps looked like he had been about to retort but choked on the words instead. Mrs. Hopps turned back to Nick and Judy, and continued, "If you two are in love with each other you could have simply told us,"

Judy and Nick both tried to speak but Nick's fumbling stuttering attempt to explain that it was just an accident tripped over Judy's equally incomprehensible and broken explanation.

Mrs. Hopps gestured with her paw as if brushing aside their excuses, "You two could have simply told everyone that you loved each other and wanted to get married and with the marriage contract already in place _no one_ would have been able to stop you at the end of the year. But It doesn't matter why you thought it was a good idea, it's already done. Now while you two might be considered already married by tradition, you won't be officially, _legally_ married until your wedding."

She stopped for a second and gave them both a hard look. "We don't need to put together a _shotgun wedding_ , do we?"

" _What?"_ Nick yelped over Judy's stammer.

"You two didn't run off and have _sex_ did you?" She asked brutally. There was a strangled gasp and Mr. Hopps face planted into the floor and lay there like a splattered lump of clay, ears outstretched and un-moving, while Nick and Judy looked back and forth between each other and Mrs. Hopps near hysterically.

Mrs. Hopps took one look at her husband and turned to the door were a number rabbits crowded watching.

"Help your father over to the couch." She turned back to Nick and Judy and looked at their panicked reaction, and sighed. "If that's the case its likely you're pregnant Judy and I can tell you from experience finishing highschool pregnant is no fun, and don't think finishing highschool as an expecting father is going to be a cake walk either Nicholas!"

Nick was just staring agape at Mrs. Hopps now, but Judy had finally seemed to have found her voice.

"MMOOMMM! We did NOT have SEX!" her mother gave her a not completely convinced look, "We DIDN'T! There wasn't even the chance too!" she cried out in exasperation.

 _Now_ her mother looked convinced, "So that is why you wanted to sneak him by us to the shower was it?"

"NNOOO!" Judy said wide eyed, and blushing just as completely as Nick, except it showed through her fur far more than his.

Mrs. Hopps just shook her head, "Judy I was in highschool too, it's not like I don't know what you're feeling."

"BUT MOM I-" Judy tried to plead.

"No buts," Mrs. Hopps cut her off, "A romantic escaped to consummate your claim on each other might seem like a good idea at the moment but are you two really ready to start your own family _right now?_ "

Nick looked at Judy absolutely terrified and she returned the look, with an extra dollop of pained frustration.

"I didn't think so," Mrs. Hopps said.

Judy looked back at her and then back at him.

"Nick, help me!" she begged, "Make her understand!"

Nick looked at Judy, her eyes full of desperation, and then at Mrs. Hopps, who wore an expression that said 'try me'.

He gulped, "Uh, Mrs. Hopps," he gulped again, "we, uh, we really weren't out trying to have sex…" he petered out under the look and raised eyebrow of Mrs. Hopps. He felt a tug on his shirt and looked to see Judy had stepped up next to him and was looking at him like he was her last chance at avoiding some truly horrible fate.

He looked back at Mrs. Hopps trying to think of something, of anything. He wasn't even sure if he could survive his own humiliation from this night, but the look she'd been giving him… he had to at least try… something.

 _Karma, Help me!_ He thought and blurted out the first thing his mind could think of.

"The wolf can tell you! he was there and he'd be able to smell it if we were fooling around!" Nick looked back at Judy and could see a bit of relief on her face, and his own panicked feelings calmed slightly.

Mrs. Hopps turned and called over to the dinning room, "Deputy Wolften would you mind coming over here and answering some questions? I'll send you off with one of the spare pies for your trouble."

"Absolutely!" came an eager reply, followed by, "Come on, out of the way, police business, move, there's pie on the line, move or I'll arrest you for impeding an officer's duty."

The wolf broke through the crowd of bunnies by the dining room door and couch with the unconscious Mr. Hopps and came over to the three of them.

"How can I help ma'am?" he said courteously and even tipped his police hat.

"These two think that your view of events can explain just how far they were planning on taking their elopement." Mrs. Hopps said.

"It wasn't an elope-" Judy started, but Mrs. Hopps cut her off.

"You two wanted Deputy Wolften to explain, so let him explain." She said and turned to the wolf expectantly.

The Deputy grinned back at her and placed his paws on his dart pistol belt in a laid back manner like he was preparing to tell a campfire story on the trail.

"Wwwell, you see I might have to agree with the little lady, ma'am. I'm not sure if I'd call it an elopement." he drawled.

Nick felt a wave of relief wash over him, and looked down at Judy seeing a similar reaction. She gave him a small reassuring smile, and he grabbed her paw and gave a reassuring squeeze in return.

"What do you mean?" Mrs. Hopps asked.

"You see, they were asleep when they marked each other, or at least when we saw them mark each other, I can't say for certain that they hadn't already done it before because of how close together they were but I don't think they had."

"Really?" Mrs. Hopps said seeming taken aback.

"Yes, ma'am. We found them asleep under a tree by the school curled together so tightly it was hard to tell where one stopped and the other started; kept snuggling closer together every time we tried to wake them up and near the end they just sort of marked each other. I think for it to be an elopement they'd have had to plan to do it. This was more like they're so in love with each other that their instincts just did it for them."

Judy was now squeezing back hard and her relief had turned to despair; Nick didn't feel much better himself.

"Anyway, they hadn't already been intimate, but I was half worried with all the scent signals that they were giving off, that they might just jump each other in the back seat of the police truck." The deputy grinned shaking his head and gestured at Judy, "She worked all summer at the fort, I mean station, and I never once caught a whiff of her being attracted to anyone else in town, so I was a bit surprised at just how hard she seems to have fallen for him. I can sort of understand it for the fox, he's clearly imprinted, and imprinted _hard_ on her, but I didn't think bunnies did that."

Nick could feel his ears trying to press their way into his skull before he quickly spoke, "I _can't_ have imprinted! I just met her today!"

The wolf turned a quizzical eye on him, "Well normally I'd agree with you, but you didn't just meet her today, you've met her before as a kit." Nick squawked in protest, but the wolf continued, "A close friend from long ago you'd just met again after years apart followed by a traumatic day and then falling asleep holding her? Yep, not surprising at all."

"But I _can't have!_ " Nick cried out.

The wolf smirked at him, "Then…" he drawled, "why is your tail wrapped around her?"

Nick looked down, and sure enough his tail had wrapped around Judy's hips and legs protectively. Judy looked, then looked at him with a startled, confused and extremely embarrassed glance and Nick went scarlet. He literally snatched his tail away and took a step back looking straight at the floor wishing he could just melt through it, as his face and ears felt like they were being blow torched.

"Don't worry kid, it's a completely natural response, frankly I'd guess that you'd started imprinting on her long ago. Ever have any other girlfriends?" Nick could feel his shoulders shrinking into himself, "ever even have any other girl interest you or make your blush?" he clutched his tail tighter and squeezed his eyes shut.

_I can't, I can't, I can't have…_

He could feel himself starting to tremble.

The wolf let out a sigh, and then in a kinder voice said, "Okay kid, maybe I'm wrong, what do I know about this I'm just a cop not a psychologist or anything." He felt a large paw on his shoulder that started guiding him somewhere, "You've had a rough day, come get something to eat, then the Hopps can show you where you'll be sleeping. You can worry about if you've imprinted another day."

Nick felt himself guided into a chair and some food was placed in front of him and a fork in his paw. At the wolfs urging he started eating robotically. His thoughts were a complete and total mess. He couldn't seem to focus on anything, and _her_ scent was still there with every breath. It made his thoughts swirl while another part of his mind just kept repeating ' _I can't have'_ over and over again. There was hushed conversation around him but he didn't hear it.

_"Is he going to be alright?"_

_"I think so Mrs. Hopps, he's just in a bit of shock. I've heard of being love sick and being in denial but both at once? And this bad? … well they've had a very rough day, I think with food and sleep and he'll be better in the morning. How's your girl doing?"_

There was a huff, _"Not much better. Did they really mark each other while asleep?"_

_"Yep. Don't think I've ever seen a case of two mammals so ears over tail in love with each other and not having a single clue about it themselves, you should have seen the ride back here."_

_"So you really think that they aren't thinking about each other like that? That he's not likely to sneak off with her to the hayloft?"_

_"Oh no, I'd keep a close eye on them. They may be completely blind to how they feel right now but they're feeling it; the scents they're giving off clearly say that much, and they'll get over their denial eventually. The fact they're seniors in highschool_ _**and** _ _all this? I think they're more like a ticking time bomb; it's a matter of when not if. Plus, whether that boy realizes it or not he's not going to be able to leave her, he's too far gone at this point. What about Judy?"_

_"She seems to have it pretty bad herself, see how she keeps looking at him? Watch her ears. See? You're right that rabbits don't imprint, but we do form a sort of bond with our mates. It usually doesn't happen till after you've been married for a while though, and it's not fast."_

_"You think it's already started with her though? She has always seemed a bit, how would you put it? …"_

_"Never interested in playing the field? Not checking the market? Missing her bunny muchness? Low on mojo?"_

A laugh, _"I was born after the disco era Mrs. Hopps. I wouldn't even know what 'mojo' was if it wasn't for Prongs. But ya, she always seemed a bit… uninterested in dating like all the other bunnies her age."_

_"It's always worried us a bit, we thought that maybe it was because of her single mindedness on her dream, that it was more of a phase, then we were worried it was because she found out that she had a marriage contract and was being withdrawn because she was afraid to get her heart broken, but now…"_

_"now?"_

_"there was an incident when she was just a little kit, before our family and the Wildes became a bit estranged. It was something that young kits sometimes do and usually doesn't mean anything at that age but… well I'll tell you about it after we get them put to bed. I wish we hadn't thought it was a good idea to stop them from seeing each other after the fair ground incident with Gideon. It would probably make things far easier now."_

_"Well isn't it better for them to be in love with each other rather than not like each other? I though you said at the Greys that it didn't look like there was any way out of the marriage contract? This seems to solve that problem."_

There was a huff, _"Well, that's true. I still can't believe that my brother put together the contract like that; Vivian and I wanted something put in writing to make our families work together, something our husbands wouldn't be able to easily find a way out of, not an absolutely iron clad arrangement!"_ another huff, "We didn't want to force them together if they didn't want to be. _So yes, this is better. I just hope we can keep them from making the same mistakes Stu and I did."_

_"It seems to have worked out for you."_

_"Hum, well it has, and I love him and our kits. But I missed my own graduation because I went into labor. I can't say that I don't wish Stu and I hadn't waited a while or at least taken more precautions, but... well highschool, and back in the day… well Stu certainly had, *giggle*, still has for that matter, mojo to spare."_

_"OOOkay, well I think the kid is done eating, I'll just go get him settled in bed if you can get Prongs a cup of coffee to wake him up. Your pie seems to have put him and his old bones into a food coma."_

_"Sounds like a plan, I'll get Judy to bed after I get the coffee. The room_ _Stu had set up is next to hers, second corridor, 9_ _th_ _door on the left."_

The fork Nick had absentmindedly been poking into the little bit of food still left on his plate was plucked out of his paw. He gave a start, roused from the turmoil of his thoughts.

"Come on kid, you need sleep." The wolf said and lead him away from the table.

He walked without really noticing where he was going, being guided by the paw on his shoulder. They stopped and a door opened.

"There kid, go get in bed and get some sleep, you'll feel better in the morning."

Nick heard the door close. He looked up and saw the bed. Sleep… sleep sounded like a great idea, he wouldn't have to think about anything while he slept.

He quickly pulled off his shirt and pants and only wearing his boxers snuggled under the covers letting them completely cover him as he curled up tail to nose.

He could still smell the scent of Judy as his roiling thoughts seemed to finally drift off and he fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> REDACTED Typo Disclaimer: I stole 'typo thumper' and put it on the skiff we used for target practice. Let's see what the WildeHopps Navy's proofreader thinks about that! He's going to wake up and realize that while he's almost caught up on his work he's missing his favorite truncheon.
> 
> Turns out gonekrazy3000 was just waiting for that one to break so he could use his new one.
> 
> Also Thank you to Anistuffs for helping smooth over a bump in the story. The Wildehopps Navy awards you the Gonekrazy proofreader award.


	10. Chapter 9 – A Normal Morning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another longer than normal chapter, hope you all enjoy.
> 
> Disclaimer: Disney you have to stop this! I didn't want to have anything to do with this! The Wildehopps Navy is trying to weaponize fluff! This stuff is just too dangerous to exist and its insanely contagious! They already have spies in Disney, one is acting like a tourist and the other is trying to steal the rights to Zootopia. The Navy is planning on (phone line goes dead)
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: This classified weapons research document was snuck out past the proofreader petty officer GoneKrazy3000. You'd better run because he's coming for it.

Judy felt numb as she nibbled at the food in front of her. She didn't feel hungry, not with everything that had happened today not to mention the bits of conversation from her older siblings she was overhearing and doing her absolute best to ignore. Thank Serendipity that all her other school age siblings had already eaten or this would have been a complete and total disaster.

Now if she could just do something about his scent on her, she thought distractedly. Bunnies didn't have the best of noses, but then again foxes had far heavier scents than rabbits. She could smell faint traces of Nick all over her from when his strong arms had held her close… she noticed she was looking at him, at his arms as he sat across and down the table. She snapped her eyes back down to her plate and her ears back against her skull.

_Oh gods, what if someone saw me looking at him?_ _**Why** _ _was I looking at him? ... Again._

It had to be his mark, that strong musky scent that overpowered the lighter traces of his smell and hung around her head like a fog, muddling her thoughts. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to clear her mind.

 _Why do foxes have to have such strong scents_? _They don't need stronger scents; their noses are better!_

If it was a bunny's mark she might be able to ignore the smell, but like some preplanned trick of fate his scent had to be strong enough to offset her lesser sense of smell.

She tried holding her breath with her eyes closed, but this only gave her a moments reprieve since she had to breath and when she did, the smell of _him_ flooder her.

A musky, deep smell of fur. His ruff sticking through his unbuttoned collar had been so warm and soft… she noticed she'd been staring at him, at his ruff and tore her eyes away again with a barely silence sharp inhale.

A smell almost reminiscent of forest and violets, but distinctly male, predatory and _male_. Something in her belly seemed to flip and she put her fork down. He was a _fox_ , foxes used to hunt rabbits! What if Nick chased and caught her? What if he held her in his strong arms, against his think luscious fur, her _male_ fox holding her tight, never letting her go…

Her stomach flipped again and she quickly looked away from him, mind spiraling out of control and fracturing into a myriad of thoughts.

She watched in a near daze as deputy Wolften lead Nick out of the dining room as she tried to reorder her mind; why had she been watching him leave? She looked back at her plate, her ears drooping. Despite her efforts she failed to get her thoughts to stop ricocheting around, she tried again, and failed again.

She didn't know how long it had been but she found herself staring at the door deputy Wolften had gone through, her heart beating faster than it should and every breath seemed too fill her, blocking out all other smells.

 _Stupid foxes and their stupid strong scents messing with my thoughts._ _Stupid, stupid, fluffy foxes and their musky sweet-_

Her Mom's paw on her shoulder broke her spiraling thoughts.

"Judy?" she looked up at her mom blankly, _stupid warm foxes, stupid-_ , "I think you need to get some rest, honey"

Judy nodded and let her mom lead her toward her room. _Stupid foxes that accidently kissed you, stupid foxes with beautiful eyes, stupid foxes with soft lips…_

Her mom opened her door for her.

"Judy do you want me to help you get ready for bed?" her mom asked a bit of concern in her voice.

_Stupid foxes, stupid_ _**male** _ _foxes-_

She started when she realized her mom had asked her a question.

"Um… uh," she though back, what had she asked? "Oh, no mom. I… your right, I just need to get some sleep…"

She quickly went into her room, closing the door and changed into an oversized ZPD shirt she'd gotten from her internship and headed for her bed.

_Stupid foxes, stupid dumb fox, my stupid dumb…_

She groaned and flopped onto the edge of the bed and burrowed under the covers.

Thank serendipity she had never had issues falling asleep. She wanted, needed to just go to sleep and get this day over with before something else happened.

 _His_ scent seemed to amplified under the covers, and her mind went fuzzy as it mixed with the fading world.

Sleep. She wouldn't have to think about anything, not Jessica, not school, certainly not about a stupid dumb fox, her st…

Her thoughts were drifting off out of her control, but she no longer cared as sleep overtook her.

She snuggled deeper into her blankets, and his scent seemed to grow surrounding her like warm comforting sunshine from a rising sun. Her blankets felt as soft as his thick fur and she cuddled into them and they seemed to wrap back around her, strong and warm and welcoming, as she lost herself to dreams.

Dreams of possible and improbable futures all joined together. Dreams of a handsome russet mammal with stunning emerald eyes coming out of one of her fairy tale romance books and sweeping her away. Dreams where they'd laugh, love, catch criminals and make the world a better place. And everywhere they went, they'd go paw in paw as he brought bright color to a world she hadn't even known was bleak.

* * *

Bonnie shook her head as the door to Judy's room closed and she returned to the dining room. 275 kits with nearly three quarters of the old enough to be involved in relationships from schoolyard crushes to engagements and marriage and she didn't think she'd ever seen a bunny that badly in love. And as for the Wilde's boy, well she didn't know that many foxes but he seemed to have fallen just as hard as Judy. She'd need to call up Mrs. Wilde and have a talk with her as to what to expect.

From what she'd seen and her conversation with deputy Wolften she'd need to keep an eye on both of them. They seemed drawn to each other like magnets and while they might be too embarrassed, at the moment, to do more that cuddle… Wolften was right, as soon as that wasn't an issue she doubted there would be anything anyone, including Nick and Judy themselves, could do to keep the two of them apart.

She'd better call up a doctor Rivers and set up an appointment for Judy. The sooner the better, because there was no telling how long it was going to be before one of them snuck into the others bed. She was personally betting within the month. And being the young mammals they were, about to finish highschool and start their own lives… she seriously doubted that they'd make it through the year with only cuddling.

And as much joy as children where she didn't think Judy or Nick wanted any just yet. Judy certainly wouldn't be able to even try out for the Academy like she'd been hoping to if she was pregnant.

Bonnie nearly laughed. She could just imagine what Stu would think of that! He'd be so conflicted between trying to decide whether to keep them apart or getting them to hook up so he wouldn't have to worry about her trying out for the ZPD.

She smiled, Stu was just a big sweetie at heart that worried even more than she did about their kits. She worried too, but she knew that she couldn't always protect her little girl; Bonnie wanted Judy to follow her dreams but she couldn't deny that there was a small hope that Judy would decide at the academy that maybe a support position in the ZPD would be better for her, maybe a dispatcher or a lab tech or even a meter maid, something that wouldn't put her in constant danger with no one to watch out for her.

She came back into the dining room just as Sherriff Prongs set his empty coffee mug on the table and creakily got to his feet, careful so his antlers didn't poke holes in the ceiling.

There were a few pops as the old buck stretched, before he said, "Well Bonnie, your food was just as wonderful as always but I need to get my old bones home for the night."

"You know you're always welcome to drop by," Bonnie said, pleased at the compliment, "I still can't believe your running around just as spry as when you dragged me and Stu back home during our senior year of highschool."

Prongs let out a loud belly laugh at that, "You two where quite the rascals back then! Always getting into trouble with each other despite everything your families could do to keep you two apart!" he laughed again, "Only time I ever had to lock up the father-in-law and the groom on their wedding day!"

Bonnie scowled, muttering at the memory, "Had to go to the courthouse in my wedding dress, almost didn't manage to get his bail posted in time so we could actually spend our first official night together."

"We'll that was better than when I had to bring you two in for being naked in-"

Bonnie cleared her throat loudly, blushing, "Well, I don't think anyone wants to hear about that, but why are you still working full time? I though the Podunk station was going to be sending one of their sheriffs over a few times a week so you didn't have to work so hard."

Sherriff Prongs snorted, "More like giving us extra trouble. The boys over at the Podunk station are tired of dealing with that incompetent spoiled brat of the Hoggs family and are hoisting sheriff Rosco off on our small town just to get a break from him a few times a week." He leaned down to Bonnie and spoke in a quitter tone, "Two more years and that puppy of mine will be ready to take over as Sheriff, I might be able to sit back and let him do most of the work after that, but till then I can't give Poduck an excuse to saddle our town with someone like Rosco." He gave Bonnie a wink, "Don't you worry, there's still plenty left in these old bones of mine, but I need to get my rest. Now where did my pup of a deputy run off to?"

"I think he's in the kitchen picking out which pie to take" Bonnie replied smiling, and the sheriff gave her nod and headed off to get the deputy.

Bonnie went over to the table and grabbed a glass of water that hadn't been cleared away yet by the bunnies on clean up duty for the night and headed over to the couch in the entrance hall.

"Stu. Stu dear. Stewart, time to wake up." She shook the form of her husband sprawled on the couch but he did so much as budge. She sighed and upended the glass over his head.

There was a sudden gasp and some spluttering, "Huh, what?!" Stu looked around and then seemed to remember everything, "Why that carrot stealing rascal! If he forced himself-"

Bonnie cut him off, "Stu, they marked _each other_. And I though we already talked about this."

He turned and looked at her, his expression a mix of a bit of anger, contriteness, confusion, and pleading, "But she's only 17! I agreed to give him a chance, not let him walk right in and take my daughter! And it hasn't even been one night yet!"

"They didn't have sex, Stu," Bonnie said patiently

"And they won't be if I-" he started mumbling darkly but Bonnie cut him off.

"As for her age, he is he only 4 months older. And there in highschool."

"But-" he tried

"And there _engaged_ ,"

"But-" this time in a more pleading tone

" _And_ they've _marked_ each other, most of the town is going to consider them already married!"

"But-" he said now desperately

"And how old were _we_ , when we did it? Humm." she asked, almost smug.

Silence

" _We_ certainly weren't engaged at the time either." Bonnie continued.

"But she's my daughter!" Stu said piteously.

"Stu you have 14 married daughters, and do you even know which buck Mary or Sarah or Jessica is currently dating?"

Stu actually seemed to get some of his confidence back, "Mary is dating Fred Thompson, a nice respectable buck whose courting her properly, Sarah is going out with that cousin of the Smiths here for the school year; he might shape up but I made sure to give him a good warning glare in town in case he decides to try anything, and as for Jessica," he grimaced, "I chased that no good Leaps boy away from trying to climb in through her window just three nights ago, gave him a good poke with my pitchfork." He smiled, "Sure made him leap but he'd wouldn't make a good Hopps."

 _Almost_ , Bonny thought and gave him a smile and a pat on the cheek, "Jessica dumped the Leaps boy yesterday and is now going out with Tommy Jumper. And as for Fred Thompson, I agree he is a nice young buck, I'm pretty sure she's going to say yes when he proposes to her from the way she tried to sneak back into the house this morning."

"Why that double dealing scoundrel!" Stu started.

"Oh don't you start, you know you like the boy and he makes her happy. _And_ he's already bought the ring." Bonnie lightly chided.

Stu crossed his arms, and harrumphed, "It's not proper! He didn't even come talk to me and ask for my blessing!"

"And did you ask my dad for his blessing?" Bonnie asked with a grin.

"I sent him a letter asking!" Stu said indignantly.

She gave him a look.

"Hey! He _burned_ that letter and then hopped up and down on it!"

Bonnie chuckled thinking back on the memory and the irony of the situation, "I know you care for our kits but are you're going to be as difficult about this as your dad was?"

Stu muttered, "I'm not anywhere near _that_ bad, our families had been holding that grudge against each other for years. But a father has got a right to be protective of his kits!" he said more confidently, "And that Fred Thompson has another thing coming if-"

"He's planning on coming to ask you this Friday," Bonnie said.

Stu narrowed his eyes, not convinced, "And how can you be sure of that?"

"Because his grandmother is Maratha Thompson, one of the queens of the Bunnyburrow rumor mill. Most of the town already knows he's planning on asking you for her paw in marriage this Friday."

"Oh," Stu seemed to reconsider, "well, it is a little improper, but he is a good lad…"

Bonnie gave him a peck on the cheek, "Now about Judy's fiancée," Stu's face darkened, "Stu, I can understand you being a little protective," she gave him another peck on the cheek, "It's sweet that you care that much but haven't you been holding grudge with the Mr. Wilde for long enough?"

Stu seemed to be wavering, "I get along with Mr. Wilde well enough now! We do business, it's just… just…" he was clenching his paws.

"Just?" Bonnie asked wanting him to get it all out.

"Look at what that Grey boy did to her! And they're not just _foxes_! Their _cousins_! And-And then he just waltzes in here with her after marked her?!"

"They marked _each other_ Stu, and he's not Gideon Grey, he's his own mammal." Bonnie said soothingly. Stu was still grinding his teeth, so she continued, "And you missed talking to deputy Wolften or Sheriff Prongs about what happened _and_ you missed watching them after you fainted."

"What does any of that have to do with it?" he asked mulishly.

"Because it's pretty obvious their completely ears over tail in love with each other and barely even know it. If you keep pushing the boy away, then you're going to end up pushing Judy away too."

His ears finally drooped and Bonnie knew she'd won, well at least won this first battle.

"Give him a chance Stu. It took my father years to finally accept you, and you know how much he regrets that now. Nicholas will be here for all of this school year and its pretty much a dead certainty they're getting married in the spring. So why don't you give him a chance, get to know him, and see who he really is?"

Stu sighed. "Okay Bon-bon, I'll try."

She gave him a final peck on the cheek and stood up, "Good. Now they're both already in bed," She rolled her eyes at his twitch, " _In separate beds._ You were the one who had the room next to hers readied for him. Now I have to help finish cleaning up from dinner, you go check on all the kits."

Bonnie headed of toward the kitchen, but stopped calling back as Stu started hurrying off.

"And no disturbing Judy or Nick! They need their sleep!"

…

Bonnie smiled to herself as she headed off down the corridor to her and Stu's room. The day may have been filled with far more excitement than she could have wished for, but in the end she no longer had to worry about Judy's arranged marriage. That worry which had been with her for _years_ was now gone and replaced by the normal worries she was accustomed to with all of her other children.

Granted it was a _little_ different, Nick being a fox, okay a _lot_ different. But he seemed like a good kit, and Bonnie had _never_ see Judy take that much interest in anyone else, not ever close. It was like the two small inseparable kits from over a decade ago had almost never been parted.

And, she got to plan another wedding! Bonnie's smile grew. She loved helping to put together weddings for her kits. It was one of the greatest joys of her life being able to help set up that special moment of their lives. She'd just finished talking to the Wildes and Mrs. Wilde seemed just about as excited as she was. Which was probably a good thing because from what she'd been told about foxes and imprinting, well it was a good thing she'd also scheduled Judy a visit with Doctor Rivers after school tomorrow so that she and the doctor could discuss, how had the doctor put it? how to make sure you didn't receive an unexpected bundle of joy?

She giggled, thinking back to her senior year. Yes, 'unexpected bundle of joy' was one way to put it. She probably should have had Judy talk to Doctor Rivers at the beginning of highschool but she'd never had more than a single date with any buck before. Well, it wasn't too late, thank serendipity, they-

Bonnie stopped walking down the hall right in front of Nick and Judy's rooms.

"Stu, what are you doing?" She asked almost amused.

Stu looked up at her from where he was sitting against the wall, blanket over his legs and pitchfork beside him.

"I'm not disturbing them! I'm just making sure he," she quirked an eyebrow, " _they_ , behave themselves." Stu finished stubbornly.

Bonnie looked at him and at the two doors, and back at Stu, "If you had seen them tonight, you'd know that their going to be out cold for the rest of tonight, you don't need to sit here in the hallway guarding there doors."

Stu's stubborn look deepened, "Better safe than sorry." He replied.

Bonnie thought for a second, before grinning widely. "Okay dear," she said in a teasing voice and turned starting to slowly walk down the hall toward their room, making sure to sway her hips, "You can sleep here in the _cold_ hallway _alone_ all night if you want, _I'm_ going to be in _our_ warm, comfortable bed."

She didn't even need to look back to know his eyes had locked on her. She gave a flick of her tail and stopped right at the end of the hallway before turning around the corner. "Too bad, I was _really_ hoping you'd want to join me, it's been a _long_ day and I was hoping to, hum, have a little _fun_ before bed."

One last tail flick and she rounded the corner snickering.

 _Let's just see how long it takes him to break._ She thought with a grin.

…

Bonnie woke up the next morning in a pleasantly snuggle with her husband. She wanted to stay there a bit longer but the sun wouldn't wait and neither would the farm.

"Time to wake up Stu." She said and gave him a good morning kiss before sliding out of bed and stretched.

 _Well, he's certainly still got his Mojo,_ she thought with a grin. She'd might need to stretch a bit more and then get a long hot shower before really getting going this morning. She looked at the form of her husband still mostly asleep as his paw tried to figure out where she'd gone, and then at the clock on the night stand.

Well, they had some time and there _was_ another way to loosen up in the morning that included the shower.

"Stewart," she crooned with a smile and a tone that made his ears pop up

…

Weekday mornings in the Hopps household were always an interesting affair. Something between a gracefully choreographed dance and barely controlled chaos. The oldest of Bonnie's kits that had married but chosen to stay and continue on the traditional family occupation of the Hopps farmers joined them for breakfast from their own burrows close to the main house bringing her grandkits which joined the youngest of her own kits, now in kindergarten, and the kerfluffle's ranks swelled back to the size of its glory days and rampaged through the house. The kits in elementary and middle school needed to be woken up and taken care of and the highschoolers either complained about wanting to sleep in or argued over who got to use the bathrooms first.

But despite the seeming chaos all around Bonnie and Stu managed it without any seeming difficulty. Breakfast was already cooking, with the first batch ready by the time her older kits joined her dropping off their own kits and lending a paw to help. Stu and her bounced around the house making lunches stopping squabbles, giving good morning hugs and keeping everything moving just as it should be.

Breakfast was now being taken care of by the other adult rabbits and the kerfluffle had been appeased with pancakes and was out in the front yard waging a three way war over who knew what. Stu was simultaneously briefing the other adults on what need to be done on the farm today and preventing a food fight from breaking out in the dining room and Bonnie was making her rounds to get any stragglers up and out of bed.

The morning route hit a bit of a bump when Bonnie went down the second corridor and realized why it had taken Stu a little longer than she'd expected to arrive in their room last night.

"Steward!" Bonnie's voice rolled through the burrow, hushing most of the talking as expectant whispers took their place.

"Yes, bon?" Stu's voice came back sounding overly innocent.

"Did you install a _lock_ on the outside of Nicholas's door?" asked a not very happy Bonnie.

The house went almost quiet.

This time there was a noticeable gap before the response call from the dining room, "Yes. I, uh, didn't want him getting lost wondering around the house last night!"

There was almost complete silence.

"Do you want me to put a lock on the inside of our bedroom door to keep you from wandering in at night?" Bonnie called back.

Another pause, but the silence was broken by giggles and whispers.

"Nooo." Came the Stu's dejected reply.

Bonnie shook her head in exasperation and unlocked the deadbolt, "Then this better be gone by tonight!" she called back toward the dining room.

There was a resigned "Yes, dear." Before the noise of the house swelled back, now louder than before.

She knocked on the door. "Nicholas, are you awake?"

No answer, she knocked again, "Nicholas, it's time to get up for school."

Still no answer.

Bonnie opened the door, and entered expecting to have to go shake her newest kit awake. Mrs. Wilde had said that foxes weren't normally morning animals and that Nick had a particularly bad habit of sleeping in.

She only got two steps in the door before she came to a halt.

There was no fox in the room. In fact, the bed didn't even look like it had been slept in.

A thousand questions and worries popped into her mind.

Had Nicholas not gone to sleep here last night? Had the stress of the day been too much? Had he run away? Where was he? Was he alright? …

Bonnie tried to calm herself. She took a few sniffs of the room, but couldn't even smell a trace of the fox. It just didn't make sense, It was like he'd never been here, but this was where the deputy had put him to bed.

Bonnie pulled out her cell phone. First thing was first, talk to the last mammal who'd seen her newest kit and track him down from there. She punched in a number and held the phone up. After a few moments she spoke.

"Sheriff Prongs, good morning… no things could be going a little better… yes, that's why I'm calling, I need to speak to Deputy Wolften to figure out where Nicholas is."

* * *

Jessica was a bit frustrated. She knew something had happened last night after she and all the other school aged kits had finished dinner been sent to either go to bed or finish their homework. All her older siblings were talking about it but every time she tried to listen in they went silent. It had to be big though, otherwise they wouldn't be so cagey about it. And while she hadn't been able to listen in on the whole story she'd caught enough key words before they when silent noticing her to know it was about Judy and the new fox, who they'd been told yesterday was going to be staying _here_ for the rest of the school year.

Things only got more interesting after hearing her parents little back and forth about the lock on the foxes door.

_What had happened last night?_

Jessica looked around, if she couldn't get her siblings to tell her what had happened then she might as well try to get the story right from the source. After a few moments of searching she stopped. Judy wasn't at breakfast, and Judy was _never_ late.

 _Interesting_.

She looked over to her dad, "Daddy? Judy's not at breakfast." She said in a concerned voice. "Do you want me to go make sure she's up?"

Her dad stopped the conversation he'd been having and looked around, brow crinkling when he couldn't find her sister.

"Please Jessica, that would be very helpful." He said with a smile and a quick pat on the head before turning back to the conversation about the what to do about the broken down tractor.

Jessica nearly skipped out of the dining room in her excitement, thinking all the while about her sister and the new fox.

Judy was always so reserved when it came to relationships. She needed to loosen up a bit, have a little fun, and Jessica was determined to help her sister in this. She hadn't ever seen Judy fall for _anyone_ before, let alone run off and make out with them. she grinned, that little episode in the janitor's closet was a good start, but knowing Judy she'd need more than just a nudge to get her new relationship moving.

Jessica grinned wider. She could be like the secret fairy godmother and make _sure_ that they fell completely in love with each other. Carrots sticks, they seemed to be already half way there. Granted, a relationship with a _fox_ was a little… different, but Judy had always been a little different herself so he was a perfect fit for her.

Anyways, they were already engaged, so what was the harm in making sure everything went along smoothly for them? Her parents seemed to be alright with it since they'd set the arrangement up, ok her dad wasn't, but when did he ever approve of a new boy until the wedding day? Besides they'd agreed to house the fox, so they obviously wanted it to work out. Maybe they were worried that the marriage contract had a loop hole or something and were trying to help get them together? Well, that would certainly explain housing him and putting him in the room next to Judy's. But their parents were their _parents_ , if they wanted to get them together and keep them together then they'd need the help of an expert. An expert like her.

She stopped in front of Judy's door and knocked, "Judy breakfast is already on the table!"

She smiled and made a silent promise that she would do absolutely everything she could to help her sisters relationship along, she cared for Judy after all and wanted her to be happy.

Jessica knocked again but still getting no answer opened the door.

There was lump under the blankets and Jessica giggled. If yesterday had been bad enough to get Judy to sleep-in then she'd need _extra_ help. Best to start by getting her up.

Jessica went over and grabbing the edge of the blankets taking a large breath.

She ripped the blankets off and shouted a morning wake up.

"JUDY, TIME TO-" it took a second for her to actually recognize what she was seeing and she screamed delightedly, " O M G! _YOU SLEPT WITH HIM?!"_

Jessica could hear the shout and sound of breaking dishes in the dining room even all the way over here, and two heads from the cuddling ball of red and gray fur popped up and blinked at her sleepily.

 _Well,_ Jessica thought now grinning broadly, _this might be easier than I though. I can go straight ahead to phase 3 of the plan._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for all the reviews and support. At some point I'm gonna find the time to respond but until then well, go read some of the awesome stories by Cimar, Fox in the hen house, A big admirer of time, Starfang's Secrets or MinscLovesBoo. (There's a ton more awesome authors out there but there's not enough room or time for me to list them all)


	11. Chapter 10 – Secret Fairy Godmother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long to get out, but it's here now. Gonna try to keep this story updated at least once a week but one way or another it'll get finished. Thanks again for all the reviews and support, now I need to go get a new cup of coffee and get working on... oh wait you all aren't allowed to know about that secret project yet.
> 
> Disclaimer: Pssst new guy. No don't stop chipping paint keep working or the chief petty officer will notice. Look you got to escape at the next port of call, I didn't want to have anything to do with this but you've got to escape and warn people that they're trying to genetically engineer a army of boxes and funnies to destroy other ships by sheer fluff- oh... high chief... I was just telling the knew guy a... ah funny joke about a box?
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: Gonekrazy3000, Jessica made me do it! Blame her!

Sheriff Prongs hummed to himself as he fiddled with the coffee equipment in the police station's small kitchenette. After an excellent dinner and a good night's sleep he felt like a young buck again, well maybe not young, but certainly a few years younger. Now all he needed for this day to get off to the perfect start was a good cup of coffee and for Wolften to get here with the mornings bakery order.

"Coffee almost ready boss?" came the gravelly voice of deputy Craig.

"Just another minute." He said, still humming.

"You know I could have taken care of the coffee." The boar said, which received a large snort from Prongs.

"Neither you nor Wolften can make a decent cup of coffee," the sheriff said disdainfully as he watched his coffee timer, "Making good coffee is an _art_ , a skill that your generation has apparently failed to learn."

"That's because our generation has Snarlbucks, sir. Hell, even _our_ little town has a Snarlbucks, and by 'take care of', I meant pick up, not make. Your coffee's good sir, but you're always going on about how fine to grind the beans and getting the temperature of the water just right and on and on. Why put so much effort into it when I can get a good cup of coffee or a double mocha latte made for me?"

Prongs just shook his head and grumbled about lazy youngsters, before pressing down the plunger of the french press and pouring out two cups of coffee.

"Here you go, you Philistine." Prongs said handing one mug to the deputy, before taking his back to his office and opening up the morning newspaper.

"Um, sir…" came the hesitant voice of the deputy, though Prongs thought he'd heard a suppressed snicker in it.

"If you wanted me to make you a better latte than you can get from Snarlbucks, than you should have asked before I got the french press set up." He said before flipping a page.

"ah, no sir. That's not it. You know your… humming, right?" The deputy asked. He was definitely hiding a snicker this time.

Prongs heard the front door open and close and a loud boisterous 'Donuts Are Here!' from Wolften. He frowned a bit but kept on reading while saying, "Old morning habit Craig, I'm sure you've heard me do it before, now tell Wolften to get his lazy butt over her with my donut."

There was a cough that badly covered up a near laugh before the deputy said, "Sure Sir, but I've never heard you hum 'I Shot the Sherriff' before."

Prongs was about to ask the deputy if he'd been out drinking last night when he realized he _was_ humming the song and facepalmed. There was some very badly stifled laughing from the main room of the station, but thankfully the phone rang just in time to saving him from having to try and explain that.

He picked the phone up with a standard, "Bunnyburrow Police station"

A small smile appeared on his face as he heard who was on the other end, "Morning to you too, Bonnie. Thank you again for dinner. I trust that everything is going well this morning."

The smile though, disappeared at her response and he asked, "Trouble with your new kit?"

After listening to the reply, he placed his hoof over the receiver of the phone shouting, "Wolften get in here double quick!"

Wolften appeared in the door with a smile at least three sizes too big for his face and holding the box of donuts. "Don't worry sheriff, after all that running around yesterday, I got you an extra of your favorite."

Prongs waved the box to the side before hitting the speaker button on the phone, "Bonnie, I've got Wolften here, we're on speaker can you explain that again."

"Sure. I came into Nicholas room this morning to wake him up, but he's not here." Came Bonnies worried voice over the phone.

"You think he ran away?" Wolften asked, looking concerned.

"I'm not sure." Bonnie said, though she was clearly worried he had, "The strange thing is that there's not just no sign of him, there's no sign of him ever being in the room. The bed hasn't been touched and while my nose isn't anywhere as good as yours, I don't smell so much as a hint of fox being in here. You were the last one to see him so I thought I should ask you before I get everyone looking for him."

Wolften scratched his head frowning, "That doesn't make sense. I showed him right to the room. Heard him flop into the bed too before I left and came back to the kitchen. Second hallway, 9th door on the left, correct?"

"Yes," Bonnie's voice was still very worried, but she asked hopefully, "Did you maybe take the second hallway from the dining room door not the second hallway in the main entrance? that's where the usual guest bedrooms are, maybe he's in there."

Wolften shook his head though Bonnie wouldn't be able to see it over the phone, "No, the second hallway from the main entrance room. Past the cubby on the left and to the 9th door."

"Cubby? Theres no cubby-" came Bonnies confused voice, before she suddenly stopped and swore loudly, "Stu said he'd have that closets sliding door fixed yesterday! That would mean you put him in-"

There was a loud shout, even though the phone, that cut Bonnie off, "JUDY, TIME TO… O M G! _YOU SLEPT WITH HIM?!"_

"… Judy's room." Bonnie finished sounding relieved and exasperated at the same time as there was some more, though distance sounding, shouts along with some crashing dishes.

There was a sigh before Bonnie said, "Hold on a second, I have to stop my husband from doing something stupid and needing you all to come out here."

There was some shuffling and other sounds of the phone being shifted and a door being opened.

Prongs leaned across the desk and whispered over to Wolften, "How did you miss the fact that you put him into her room?"

Wolften shrugged embarrassedly, "Followed instructions and from what I saw it looked like just a normal bedroom, definitely not a girls bedroom, no pink walls or posters of bunny boy band and Justin Beaver, hell the only poster was… a…" he trailed off looking even more embarrassed his ears dropping. Prongs raised an eyebrow before he finished dejectedly, like he was expecting to get laughed at, "a ZPD poster." Prongs facepalmed again, and there was a muttered, "Oh come on, it was late and the entire house smelled like bunnies. How was I supposed to know?"

The noises over the phone had died down but there was a growing sound of running feet and what could now be understood as a continuous string of outraged protestations, threats and something about the wrath of good old fashioned farmers.

"Stu. STU! Calm down." came Bonnie's voice

"Calm down?! CALM DOWN?!" Prongs could easily recognize Stu Hopps's hysterical voice now, "You want me to calm down while that sly conniving fox snuck into her room to forced himself on my daughter?!"

"That's _not_ what happened." Bonnie's stern voice replied

There was another loud call, almost a gleefully innocent shout, "Ohhh?! Then why are you and he snuggling in bed while he's naked and you're only wearing a t-shirt?"

"THAT'S IT!" yelled a hysterical and enraged Stu. There were some zapping sounds, "FORGET USING A PITCH FORK, THAT FOXES TAIL IS GOING TO GET CRISPED FOR SNEAKING INTO MY DAUGHTERS ROOM!"

Wolften leaned toward prongs looking a bit worried now, "Was that a taser?"

There was another sigh from over the phone and a barely audible, 'I don't have time for this' before Bonnie spoke up louder, "Ok, Stu," there was the sound of a door opening, "You can explain to Nicholas that they can't sleep together yet."

"BY CARROTTS THAT'S RIGHT," Stu snarled before there was the sound of more running and zapping, "COME HERE FOX-" Stu's shout was suddenly muffled by a door slamming shut and the sound of what Prongs thought was a deadbolt lock being thrown, though another shout that Prongs recognized as Judy's interrupted the sound.

"JESSICA GET THE CARROT FREAKING HELLS OUT OF MY ROOM!" followed by a loud thump of something hitting a wall. There was another thump and some giggles and laughs before a third thump.

"JUDY AND NICK, SITTING IN BED C-U-D-D-L-I-N-G!" The previous voice sang out in a singsong voice.

"Um, everything alright over there?" Prongs asked into the phone, a little concerned as there was the sound of a door slamming before another thump.

"FIRST COMES LOVE, Opps, CAME ' _LOVE'_. THEN COMES MARRIAGE. THEN COMES BABY IT THE BABY CARRIAGE!" The other bunnies voice continued singing as it faded getting further away trailed by a seethingly angry shout from Judy of, " _JESSICA!"_

Bonnies voice came back sounding tired already, "Thank you Sheriff Prongs, Deputy Wolften, I think I know where my missing kit is and I've put Stu in time-out for now. I think I can handle everything from here."

There was the sound of someone knocking on a door from over the phone before the muffled voice, a mix of pleading and residual hysterical anger, said, "Booonnniiee? Please let me out, *Zappp* I'll only singe his tail a little *Zappp*, just once so he knows I'm not messing around *Zappp*-AHHH-" his plea cut off in a yelping scream of pain before there was a loud thud, and a lot of muffled groaning.

Prongs could hear Bonnie muttering, "Told him not to buy that stupid taser, knew he'd only get himself hurt."

"Okay, Bonnie. Um… just give us a call if you need any backup dealing with… any of that. Ah, do you need us to call an ambulance for Stu?" Prongs asked.

There was the sound of a lock being undone, a door opening and then it being closed and relocked a second later to a few more groans.

"No, I think he'll be fine, though if you want to send one of your deputies by today I have a taser here I need to get rid of."

"Sure thing Bonnie, we can take care of that for you. We'll stop by on the afternoon patrol."

"Thanks Sheriff, now I need to go make sure Nick and Judy are up before they're late for school."

* * *

Judy was having a pleasant, lazy dream where the hero from her romance stories had come to life and was holding her, just snuggling with her as they rested after an adventure. She was warm and comfortable surrounded by a pleasant reassuring scent. She wanted to stay like this forever, to be held like this forever. Nothing in the world could go wrong when she was being held like this, nothing could drag here away…except her stupid sister yelling at her.

Judy groaned and huddled closer to the warm source of heat in her fading dream as she felt the colder morning air attack her now that her stupid sister had torn the sheets off her bed… again.

Judy tried not to groan as she looked up, blinking, and saw, just as she expected, Jessica's face come into focus. Why did her sister have to get up extra early just so that she could wake her up like this? She thought she'd finally gotten her to agree to stop doing this. When was the last time she had slept in anyway?

"What do you want, Jessica?" Judy muttered still waking up. She was usually quick to wake up, but yesterday had been a _long_ day. She couldn't ever remember going to bed that utterly exhausted from a day's events like that before. Her heart seemed to skip a beat or two as she thought back over them, thought about her fo… _the_ fox. The fox whose scent she could still smell on her. She banished the thoughts a red fur, green eyes and soft lips, trying to steady he suddenly high heart rate. Thankfully, she'd gotten a good night's sleep, the best she could remember in ages actually, she was going to need it if waking up to Jessica was any sign of how her day was going to go.

She'd almost rather just curl up in bed and go back to her wonderful dream than face another 'Jessica' day. She could just imagine that dream calling her back to sleep, pulling her back to bed, snuggling closer to her, a pleasant warmth against the colder air while murmuring in sleep filled voice, "five more minutes"

Jessica snickered, her paw over her mouth not able to hide her smirk.

It took Judy's mind a few seconds to register that she _hadn't_ imagined that voice. turning her head toward the sound, she saw fur.

Red fur.

Red fur of a muzzle against her head.

Red fur of a muzzle against hers that lead to creamy white fur under a chin that lead down to a warm strong chest she was snuggled into.

A chest that her arms were wrapped around.

Judy felt the warmness close a bit more around her, felt herself pulled by strong yet gentle arms closer against that fur and looked further down to see a red tail, an amazingly warm and fluffy red tail with a cute black tip, wrapped around them.

Part of Judy started panicking while another part of her didn't seem to care and just wanted to go back to sleep.

_Oh no, no, no, no, No, No, NO, NO! This isn't happening!_

_Why not? You like this, you like him, he's warm_

_This isn't happening, Not happening, NOT in front of Jessica! No, no, No…_

_Ignore Jessica. Fox warm, air and bitchy sister cold, snuggle closer._

_No, No, No, NO! This is just a dream, that's it this is just a dream, I'm dreaming all of this._

_Uhm, Yep a wonderful dream isn't it? Your fox holding you, snuggling against you. Gonna have to dream of this more often._

_Oh gods we're going to have each others scents all over us, no, no, no, No, No, NO…_

_He does smells wonderful; don't you just love his musky scent? snuggle closer to that smell_

Jessica's snickering voice broke into Judy's divided mind, "Wow. Taking him to bed on your first night? You've got it bad."

Judy's head popped back up to glare at her sister, she managed to free one arm to point at her sister angrily.

"It's-" The start of Judy's angry retort was cut off by the most heart rending, desperately longing whine that Judy had ever heard. A whine from Nick who wrapped himself tighter around her, his muzzle now burrowing into the crook of her neck and shoulder, the tip of his nose finding its way under the collar of her shirt. The combination of the warmness of his body, the tingling from the spot where Nick was nuzzling her, and the shattered feeling of her heart from that whine left Judy with her mouth flopping while no words came out.

Jessica however didn't seem to have that problem as she was now only halfheartedly muffled snickers from behind both of her paws over her mouth, "O M G, I think he's got it worse. Was he only this cuddly _after_ your night time activities?"

Judy's traitorous mind immediately brought up memories of waking up in Nicks arms underneath the tree at school. Her upright ears suddenly felt very hot, and she tried to explain that there had not been any 'night time activates' but only managed to splutter, "N-NOO, ni-", at which Jessica squealed a bit in delight. Judy's ears got hotter and she tried again, "NO, I did not sleep with him!". Her sister just looked at her and Nick, at the bed and then back at them with a raised eyebrow, still smirking.

Judy's ears were on fire now, "We _didn't have sex!_ " she exclaimed in a desperate near choked whisper, not even paying any attention to all the noises from the hallway.

Jessica's ears twitched and a look so innocent that it screamed 'guilty' came onto her face before she very loudly said in a surprised voice, "Ohhh?! Then why are you and he snuggling in bed while he's naked and you're only wearing a shirt?"

"He's not naked!" Judy's hissed angrily, thanking every god, that she'd seen that Nick still had his boxers on. She ignored what sounded like shouts from the hallway and tried to extract herself from Nick without any success. She was nearly cocooned in a ball of warm fur and her movements only caused the sleeping fox to nuzzle against her more.

The sudden wave of warm tingling feelings in her clashed with her now suddenly racing heart and her rising temper at her sister, leaving Judy at a complete loss of what to do. She was desperately trying to get her mind back in working order, trying to think of anything to do _except_ snuggling back against the fox when a flash from the camera of Jessica's phone got her full attention.

"Oh, how _cute_. You made him put on a pair of boxers with _hearts_ afterwards?" she said and took another picture.

Judy's temper won out.

She used her one free paw to grab one of her stuffed bunny dolls at the head of the bed and despite the difficulty of throwing in from her warm foxy cage flung it at Jessica shouting, "JESSICA GET THE CARROT FREAKING HELLS OUT OF MY ROOM!"

Her sister dodged the stuffed missile and started giggling. Her giggles turned to outright laughter as she dodged the second missile and there was a sleepily mumbled, "I'll get up, just five more minutes…"

Jessica took a third picture while starting to taunt Judy, singing in her loudest voice, "JUDY AND NICK, SITTING IN BED C-U-D-D-L-I-N-G!"

Judy started growling as she tossed another stuffed rabbit, she was going to run out of easily reachable ammunition in another throw or two, but Jessica darted out the door slamming it shut as Judy's last shot bounced off it.

Judy could hear Jessica continuing to sing at the top of her voice as she ran down the hall, "FIRST COMES LOVE, Opps, CAME ' _LOVE'_. THEN COMES MARRIAGE. THEN COMES BABY IT THE BABY CARRIAGE!"

Judy gave out one last futile cry of, " _JESSICA!"_ and probably would have continued yelling after her sister if the sudden whining and nuzzling from a fox muzzle against her neck had caused her to gasp and let out a small moan before she stifled the reaction.

The sleeping fox now apparently satisfied that the noisy disturbance to his sleep had stopped, started a rumbling purr that had Judy's blush flaring back to life. she managed to hold onto some of her wits this time and started desperately trying to think as she tried to slowly worm her way out of his warm hold.

_Nick's just asleep. He has no idea what he's doing. He's probably just dreaming-_

His nuzzling stopped for a second, and then there was the distinct feeling of something slightly wet and rough lick her cheek before the nuzzling continued.

She let out a surprised Meep, and 'Nick!' as her entire body seemed to suddenly become too warm.

"Nick! Come on! wake up! Please, it's time to get up." She tried desperately

_He's just dreaming, everybody has dreams like this, gods this feels better than a dream…_

Judy urgently tried to clear her head of the ridiculous stray thoughts that were starting to bounce around it.

"Nick, time to wake up…" she tried again only to get another mumble about a few more minutes.

_We're just friends, new friends. He doesn't think of me like that. He's probably dreaming of some vixen in the city._

Nicks eyelids were starting to flutter, as she continued to try and coax him awake.

_Jessica probably thought it would be a funny to tell him this was his room last night, why else would he have fallen asleep in my bed? It's not like he'd want to…_

Nicks head shifted and his eyes finally, slowly opened.

_Oh gods, he has beautiful eyes._

"Judy?" came Nick's soft sleepy voice as he blinked. His nose was right against hers but she couldn't look at or even tear her thoughts away from anything besides his eyes, his beautiful emerald eyes.

Time seemed to slow down to a crawl as she stared into those eyes; She heard herself mumbled a "Morning" but froze as the movement caused her lips to lightly touch his.

The door opening and her mother's voice broke the spell.

"Judy, Nick sorry for the confusion, Deputy Wolften mixed…" she stopped with a surprised embarrassed sounding "ohh my."

Judy pulled back giving them a few inches of space, starting to blush again and mumbling something she thought might have been an apology. The sudden shift of movement though made her aware of something she didn't think had been there before, something hard pressed between them-

The inside of Nick's ears suddenly went as red as her now flaming blush, before he quickly let go of her.

"Oh my gods, Judy, I'm so sorry!" he said desperately as he scooted away before falling right off the bed and hitting the floor.

He got up frantically, still apologizing, the suddenly realizing that he was only wearing boxers, tried desperately to cover the obvious bulge with his paws and tail. He desperately looked around and ran over to a pile of clothes on the ground before yanking on his pants in what must have been a world record while profusely apologizing the whole time.

"Nicholas, calm down," her mother's warm but somewhat tired voice finally broke Nick's constant stream of spluttering apologizes. "Deputy Wolften showed you to the wrong room by mistake. Why don't you go on and get showered and cleaned up, I'll have someone bring you the clothes that where dropped off for you

Nick, still blushing hard enough that Judy could see it through his fur, nodded his head and mumbled another apology before grabbed the rest of his clothes and bolted for the door.

"Just ask someone to show you where the bathrooms are and the house bathroom rules!" Judy's mom shouted after the disappearing fox, before shaking her head.

She turned back to Judy, who had mutely watched Nick disappear. She was still staring at the door where he'd vanished while only wearing his pants. Bunnies could be strong but instead of bulky muscle, the fur on Nick's chest and back had rippled lightly as he moved hinting at a lean but powerfully defined frame no bunny would ever be able to match.

"If your done staring after your fiancée," her mom said, startling her before continuing right over her spluttered denial, "You need to get up and get ready too. You're already running late, plus I've set up an appointment with Doctor Rivers after school today for you."

* * *

Nick's heart was hammering so hard he was surprised it hadn't burst out of his chest. He finally slowed as he neared the end of the hallway, breathing hard. After everything that had happened yesterday, to wake up in the wrong bed, in _Judy's_ bed…

_Judy is going to hate me._

The thought kept bouncing through his mind. His first real friend out here and she was going to hate him. She was going to think that he had snuck into her bed like some sly sneaking fox. And if that wasn't bad enough, _why_ had his stupid body chosen that moment to act up? Sure, she smelled nice, more than nice really, and was so comfortable to hold… and she looked so cute and lovely that he'd imagined that she'd kissed him after he'd woken up, but he'd never had a reaction like _that_ when thinking about _any_ vixen he'd liked before!

_Judy is so totally going to hate me._

It had to be all this stupid talk of the marriage contract. That was why. If that stupid contract hadn't already caused enough issues, it had just caused him to lose his only friend out here.

"Need any help there? Or are you just gonna continue to stare at the wall?" a voice said behind him making him jump in surprise. He quickly turned around to see a doe that looked almost exactly like Judy, except she just smelled different, not anywhere as nice as Judy's scent, plus her eyes where just normal brown, not like Judy's strikingly beautiful lavender eyes. Those eyes that had he'd woken up to that he'd wanted to just keep looking at…

He pulled his drifting thoughts back together quickly, "Um…"

 _focus_ ,

He thought quickly trying to remember what Mrs. Hopps had said, "ah, ya actually. Um, where is the bathroom and shower?"

The doe looked him up and down before speaking in a voice a bit to gleeful for Nick, "I think I can see why Judy likes you,"

The words though, felt more like a dagger being thrust into Nick's heart after what had happened this morning. She continued, apparently oblivious to his sudden stabbing pain, "The bathrooms are right over here, come on."

Nick followed the doe wordlessly down the rest of the hall to where she pointed at three doors with white placards hanging on their fronts.

"Better hurry though, the school buses are going to be here in just under an hour," the doe said as Nick knocked, then opened the door to an empty bathroom.

The bunny doe let out a snicker as he entered, "Butter scrub hard too since you smell more like Judy right now than a fox!"

Nick quickly closed the door and leaned against it, trying to will his blush away as the young doe snickered again on the other side, saying, "Wow, he's just as easy as Judy." Before walking away.

"At least this day can't possibly get any worse," Nick muttered before taking a deep breath, though that just reminded him of Judy, and heading for the shower. Undressing quickly, he got in closing the shower curtain.

Turning on the knob, Nick couldn't express how thankful he was that there was an immediate stream of hot water; after everything else he was prepared for it to be icy cold, or maybe just to break or something when he touched it. He could even get his head under the spray without too much trouble. A hot shower in the morning always had been the only enjoyable thing about waking up. He could fell his mode rise just a tiny bit.

Maybe today wouldn't be so bad after all, maybe if he apologized to Judy and explained he really hadn't meant to do any of that, then she'd forgive him. If he was lucky enough he might even be able to salvage his new friendship.


	12. Chapter 11– Into the Frying Pan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to admit that I think Jessica might make a good grinch. She's got the knack for it, except that despite the chaos she causes her heart still seems to be in the right place. Might have to see if I can do something about that.
> 
> Disclaimer: I think the Wildehopps Navy is trying to brainwash us or something, maybe there trying to get all us pressed sailors to come down with Stockholm syndrome. Why else would they be giving us starbucks espresso rations now? I won't fall for it! (sips espresso)
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: Make room on that blame band wagon, cause I'm gonna still blame Jessica for this. (unfair sure, but it's easy!)

Judy escaped from her room and bolted down the hallway towards the bathrooms, her clothes for the day clutched in her paws.

She'd made the mistake of speaking before she'd thought about what she was saying and had asked why her mother had scheduled a doctor's appointment today. Her mom had just looked at her before asking if she was still planning on applying for the police academy or if she was now planning on starting a family with Nick right away. The question had caught her completely off guard as her thoughts where admittedly else where.

Her mom had just shaken her head saying, "Your engaged Judy, what do you think happens when you and your fiancé start doing more than just literally sleeping together?" which had made Judy's mouth drop open before she'd tried to protest. Nick and her were just friends after all! It wasn't like they were about to start sleeping together….

In hindsight maybe that wasn't the best way to phrase her argument, because her mother had just crossed her arms till her protests had died and poignantly asked, with what Judy was dismayed to see was actual amusement, what they had been doing last night then that had ended with them holding each other this morning. Given her amusement, Judy's mother was quick to accept Judy's insistent statement that 'nothing had happened' but Judy's further argument that nothing would happen only got an outright laugh.

"Judy, did you miss his reaction to you? Because at least one part of him wants something to happen." It was at that point that Judy thought that escape might be her best option since it looked like her mother was about to give her 'the birds, the bees and the bunnies' speech. She'd set a new record for grabbing her clothes and making it out of her room, saying something about needing to hurry so she wouldn't be late for school.

She hadn't given her mother any response as she'd asked her, "Can you honestly tell me you don't feel the same way and didn't have a similar reaction?" in an amused voice as she'd run by her and out into the hall.

She should have said something though, because she'd certainly left her mother with the wrong impression.

"We wouldn't mess around. Nick's my friend not my boyfriend! Okay, maybe he _is_ my fiancé but that's different." Judy muttered to herself _._

 _That didn't come out right,_ she thought to herself frowning. _It's not like he or I were really thinking about each other when we were sleeping togeth… asleep and those sorts of reactions are normal when waking up from… dreams. And everybody has those kinds of dreams. It's a completely normal reaction; it doesn't mean anything._

"And I'm not just going to hop into bed with someone I only just became friends with!" She muttered again. _Okay that still didn't sound right_ , "He might have gorgeous eyes, smell so wonderful and… male, and be the most amazing cuddler I could imagine, but I want someone that I can love because of who they are, and because they love me back. I might have to marry him but that doesn't mean I have to sleep with him. And I'm not just going to sleep with Nick solely because he's ho-" she stopped speaking before she could finish uttering the word 'hot' and tried to figure out when she'd started seeing Nick like that.

_Don't forget that chest and back of his, that sleekly powerful, well defined chest and back._

There was a warm twinging feeling deep in her but she stifled all thoughts of it.

Fine, so even if he was a fox, she did find him… physically attractive. And the way he'd been cuddling in his sleep was adorably cute. But that didn't change anything! And he'd still teased her yesterday, even called her that ridiculous stereotyping nickname.

_But he stood up to Gideon for you, supported your dream and then when you were cold he did his best to keep you warm. He seems to count where it matters._

Yes… he seemed to be like someone she _might_ be able to lov- to be someone she could like, but that was the problem. She didn't _know_ , all she had was yesterday. And what about how Nick felt about her? He wanted to be her friend, but he probably just saw her as some silly little bunny he'd be stuck with for the rest of his life. And if he was half as nice a mammal as he seemed, then why wouldn't he try to be her friend, especially in their circumstance? That certainly _didn't_ mean that he found her attractive. It wasn't like she was anything special either. As far as looks went she might not be ugly, but she was about as plain as a doe could be. As much as she hated it, there was a reason her sister and even her dad jokingly called her 'Jude the Dude'; her tom-boy attituded lined up well with her unremarkable looks and the way she was training for the police academy.

_Well from what Sharla said he seems to think your cuter than any other girl at school._

Despite her effort not to, she couldn't stop the bush that rose at remembering what Sharla had told her of the lunch fight.

"He was just standing up to Gideon. That's all, there's nothing more to it. Out of everybody at school why would he like me more? _And_ he comes from the city, he's probably used to seeing girls far cuter than anyone out in some little farming town everyday. He just said that because he was trying to be nice, not becas-"

Judy's mumbling came to an abrupt halt when the last voice she wanted to hear registered.

"Decide to finally get out of bed now that there isn't a something pleasant to keep you warm in it?" said an extraordinarily smug Jessica, leaning against the wall playing with her cellphone.

Judy could feel her temper rising. The last thing she wanted to deal with today was her stupid, teasing sister, her sister that looked almost exactly like her except that in all the small ways Judy was plain, Jessica wasn't. Jessica was the type of doe that bucks drooled over. Judy had come to terms with that years ago but with everything else that had happened this morning that little fact of life was almost enough to break her. She felt like throwing common sense to the wind and slugging her sister in that too pretty smirking face of hers, she felt like breaking down and crying.

And to top it all off was that stupid phone of hers which she'd taken those pictures with!

"If you don't delete those pictures Jessica I swear I'll… I'll…" Judy couldn't think of what she'd do, except that it would probably be something that would get her into trouble. Judy was so upset that she could feel her paws shaking.

Jessica looked her over and lost a bit of her smugness. She sighed, tapped on her phone before turning it around to show Judy the pictures and hitting the delete button.

"Better?" Jessica asked, as Judy's temper calmed just a fraction. She was still angry at her sister but it was only another part of her wildly tumultuous emotions she was feeling this morning instead of being out in front leading the crowd. She needed some time to collect herself, to get her balance back after waking up from the best sleep could remember only to be thrown into the worst morning of her life.

Judy turned and saw two of the placards on the three bathrooms where flipped over to red and one was still white. She headed to the single unoccupied bathroom still fuming. She could hear the shower running in one of the bathrooms and thought about that.

_A hot shower and some time by myself is exactly what I need right now, or to use Jessica as a practice dummy for practicing police procedure take downs._

Judy stopped at the door to the bathroom, her paw on the handle before a sudden thought hit her.

"Jessica! Who did you send those pictures to!" she snapped whipping her head back to her sister.

Jessica rolled her eyes, "Oh come on, I'm not stupid, I learned my lesson from yesterday's little picture… fiasco. I only sent those ones to your friend Sharla. You share everything with her anyways."

_Sharla? Oh gods, she sent those pictures to Sharla?!_

She was so going to hit Jessica, but that was taking backseat at the moment to the explosion of panic that news sent reeling through her. Sharla was Judy's best friend but try as she might the sheep was horrible at keeping secrets.

_Oh no, no, no, no! She's going to send them to her brother and he's going to tell…_

"Are you just going to stand there in front of the bathrooms wearing only a t-shirt?" Jessica asked with a smirk, "Then again if your waiting to give your fox a little show when he comes out, I approve. Though you could try striking a pose, something to make his mouth drop open like-"

Judy opened the door with the white placard, jumped into the empty bathroom, and slammed the door behind her, cutting off Jessica, her cheeks absolutely on fire at the idea of strutting around for anyone, _especially_ Nick.

Except the bathroom wasn't unoccupied.

* * *

Jessica watched the door slam shut with a smile.

_Wow, that worked better than planned._

She shook her head with at her sister's reaction to the suggestion of showing off for her fox. When it came to anything serious, nothing would stand in her sister's way, but the suggestion she should flirt with someone and that seriousness and determination took second seat.

 _She's got it bad though_ , Jessica mussed. Judy usually only blushed before firing back, but this time she'd been completely, totally flustered. How could Judy _still_ be that shy? They obviously liked each other and she'd just been sleeping with him for Serendipity's sake. But then again helping out your sister in a situation like this was what good sisters were for. She didn't need to hear Judy's mutterings while she'd been coming toward the bathrooms to know that her sister's looks and general lack of, really complete lack of, relationship experience or success was a source of insecurity for her. That was probably the reason that her sister had a secret love for romance novels too.

Jessica grabbed a chair from the study room behind her and walked over to the bathroom door.

Now though, Judy had found someone she liked, granted Jessica really didn't see what Judy saw in the fox. He was okay she guessed, but that lean lanky form didn't really do anything for her, and while she didn't have anything against the whole interspecies dating thing, she found it a bit odd anyway. Regardless, those two were acting like blind idiots. She didn't know about foxes, but Judy was a _bunny_ and bunnies shouldn't be so shy about their love interests. She needed to go up to that fox and tell him that he was going out with her, not run away and give him love sick looks from a distance.

Jessica chalked that up to her sister's lack of experience and insecurities, which was why she was now more determined than ever to help her out. All Judy needed was a little push, well… more of a big push. She placed the chair under the handle of the door, levering it into place. Maybe a couple big pushes.

Jessica nodded at her handy work. She reached up and flipped the placard over to the red 'occupied' side, saying though she new Judy probably couldn't hear her through the bathroom door with the shower running, "Opps, Judy, you forgot to flip this! I'll just take care of that for you."

She couldn't help but giggle a bit before going and turning the other two placards on the two unoccupied bathrooms back over to their white sides like they should have been.

Her sister deserved to be happy, and Jessica was determined to make it so. Sometimes, she thought as she skipped away, Serendipity just needed a little helping hand. Anyway, there were other projects that needed her attention; The senior production was going to be coming up and she had the perfect idea for it.

* * *

Nick had been spending the time in the shower practicing how he was going to try and apologize to Judy but had rejected every one after hearing himself say them because they all sounded stupid, trite or insincere, when the bathroom's door slammed startling him out of his reverie.

He reached over and pulled the bathroom curtain to the side enough to stick his head around it,

"Um, sorry I'm still using this-" his sentence broke off with a squeak as his heart shot into his throat and lodged there. Judy, and he _knew_ it was Judy just by her eyes was staring right back at him with just as startled a expression.

They just stood like that for what seemed like a minute before the stack of clothes in Judy's arms dropped to the floor with a soft thump, while her arms where still outstretched as if holding them.

The both spoke up,

"Nick! Sorry. Sorry! I didn't kn-"

"Judy!? I'm, ahh. What are y-"

Nick yanked his head back behind the shower curtain, but slipped with the sudden movement and in a flailing ungraceful fall slammed into the shower floor in a heap.

"Oh, my gods! Nick! Are you all right?" Judy said worriedly as she rushed over.

Nick let out a long groan, but before he'd even opened his eye's he felt a set of small paws hurriedly examining his head, "Nick! Please be alright, that sounded bad, are-"

"Oww!" he hissed as she touched a sore spot where he'd whacked his head against one of the shower knobs, "Careful Carrots!" he reached up and caught her paw in his so that she didn't poke that spot again.

"Oh gods, Nick should call an ambulance? A fall like that-" she started, sounding even more worried, almost frightened now

"Judy." He said and opened his eyes looking at her, though the movement made him grimace, "I'm fine,"

She looked at him with a face filled with worry and a bit of anger, "No you're not alright! I saw how you flinched! You could have a fracture! You could have-"

"Okay, I'm not perfectly fine," he said and sat up a bit, though he still winced while reaching back to carefully feel the forming bump, "But I'll be okay. That hurt, but I've had worse."

Rather than calming her down, this seemed to do the opposite, "Worse?! What do you mean worse? Do you fall down in the shower _a lot_?"

"No!" he scowled and winced again as he probed the bump with his fingers, "I've had worse getting beaten on when assholes teamed up against-" he started explaining with a bit of annoyance before shutting up when his mind caught up to what his mouth was saying.

Judy was staring at him with a mix of emotions from worry and concern to astonishment and outrage.

"look, just forget I said anything." He mumbled his ears going back. "I'll be okay, thanks for making sure I was still alright."

Judy just continued to stare at him, and he finally noticed that he hadn't let go of her paw and that the showers spray was soaking her t-shirt making it stick to her body.

"Um… Judy?" he started, feeling his face and ears heat up rapidly as he released her paw and looked away.

"I'm not just going to forget what you said!" She said vehemently, "Who teamed up to beat you? When? Nobody hurts my friends!"

Nick tried to speak but his throat choked up a bit and he couldn't get any words out. He looked back over to her to see her face set in a determined expression, making her look almost fearless despite only wearing a now water soaked and now somewhat translucent T-shirt, which only reminded him of his current state of undress.

His heart was suddenly pounding and not even the aching throb of the bump to his head managed to thwart the sudden flood of mixed emotions that her expression, statement, and current position caused. He tried to speak, looked away before glancing back at her and then quickly peeling his eyes from hers again, all the while attempting to clear his throat as the shower continued to spray water onto the inferno his face had become.

He finally managed to speak past the knot in his throat after a few tries, though his voice was a bit hoarse.

"That's, ehem, that's a… long story, Judy. And um, the shower might not be… the best place for me to tell you it." he said, and glanced at her only long enough to see that she was starting to blush having finally realize their current state and proximity.

She backed up looking to the side, blushing hard, "Sorry, I um… forgot. You can tell me after you finish…" she gestured at him sitting in the shower and then glanced away seeming to blush as hard as he was.

"If you're sure you're alright…"

"I am." He said having a hard time both not looking at her and trying to speak to her.

"I'll, ah... just…" she trailed off with a gesture Nick couldn't interpret, before she grabbed the towel off the towel rack and used it to quickly dry herself to the point she wasn't dripping wet.

"Judy," Nick started after adjusted the curtain to give him some semblance of modesty, "We're still friends?"

She tossed the towel back onto the rack and said a bit shyly, "Of course, why wouldn't we be?" She grabbing her dropped clothes, before giving him another short glance, still blushing hard, "I'll… just see you… afterwards." She finished with one last look at him, turning to the door.

"Thank you," Nick said quietly looking down at the floor of the shower, his arms and tail wrapping around is knees., "Thank you for being my friend, Judy," He was glad that he was in a shower with the water running, as no one would notice a few extra drops.

He heard her reply with a soft, "Always," before she turned the door handle. Or tried to turn the door handle since it didn't move and only rattled a bit.


	13. Chapter 12 – Out of the Pan, Into the Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N
> 
> Disclaimer: Shhh! I don't know whats going on but all the officers in the WildeHopps Navy are talking about some sort of secret Conspiracy. It's turned into such a big deal that they've shipped out some special strike teams to assist them. I'll give the Navy this chapter and then while they're distracted by it and this Conspiracy, I'll try to escape.
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: Blame The Conspiracy!

 

Judy was so flustered thinking about Nick, about whether he was okay, about what he'd let slip about being bullied, about how his wet matted fur made every sleek muscle on his chest and stomach standout, about what she'd glimpsed a little bit lower, that she nearly walked into the door trying to exit the bathroom when the handle didn't turn.

She looked at it in confusion before trying to turn it again, with no more success than the first time. She then tried harder, but it only rattled louder as the handle on the other side seemed to bang against something.

"What the-," Judy started saying before all the pieces started falling in place. Jessica waiting outside the bathroom. All the other bathroom placards but one, showing they were in use when everyone should have already been at breakfast. That smug grin on her sister's face.

"Cheese and Crackers!" Judy swore. She'd been so stupid! She should have _known_ her sister was up to something with the way she'd ambushed her. She just hadn't been thinking clearly, she'd been thinking about Nick, about…

 _About the naked fox I'm locked in a bathroom with and spent the night cuddling against._ Her mind remined her unhelpfully. And while that might seem like something out of a horror story to other bunnies, the thought that followed right on its heels was, _the hot male fox I'm looked in a bathroom with._

"Judy? What's wrong?" Nick asked in a quiet, almost ragged tone.

His voice brought her back to the present as she tried to squash the mental image, a very clear image considering what she'd just seen, that her mind brought up with that last thought.

She yanked on the door handle a few more times, but however her sister had jammed it, she'd done a good job because it held against all her attempts.

" _Jessica_!" Judy growled wishing she could get her paws on her sister. She glanced back to see Nick peeking around the curtain with a questioning look, "My sister jammed the door!" she fumed and glared back at offending, though blameless door, her whole body stiff with her anger at Jessica. She couldn't help it when her foot started thumping angrily against the ground.

There was a choked squeaking sound, like someone's breath being strangled and she glanced back over her shoulder again to see Nick looking at her with wide eyes and his mouth hanging open with an almost dazed expression on his face.

The first thought that ran through her head was a question about why he was looking at her like that. She was about to ask him 'what?', when but her mind unhelpfully filled in his blurry outline through the opaque shower curtain, with what his body actually looked like with his fur wet and slicked down. That made her foot stop with one last hard thump. The image made her whole body go rigid, and she saw Nick's eyes track up and down slightly with her small stiff jerk. His eyes that where looking right at her tail, her tail that was perked up angrily and had jerked with her reaction, her tail that, she just now realized, her shirt had road up over when she'd leaned over to help him in the shower and was hanging hooked on her tail like an open curtain.

The confusing warm feeling in her stomach at seeing that mental image of Nick was instantly superseded by the blaze that flare on her face, a blaze hot enough to even sideline her angry thoughts about her sister for the moment. A blaze that while partly angry that he was staring at her uncovered back side was far more flustered by the way he was staring. It wasn't lecherous or lewd, and that made it worse because while she knew exactly how she would have responded to those kinds of looks, she had no idea how to respond to this.

She was about to yell at him to stop staring at her, more out of confused embarrassment than any actual conscious thought, but before she could open her mouth to do so, her ears caught a noise through the door. All the blood which had just rushed to her ears and cheeks, drained even faster than it had arrived and a feeling of pure dread awoke inside of her.

It must have shown on her face because it was enough to break Nick's dazed expression. He blinked, and looked at her his face shifting to one of confusion mixed with worry as he opened his mouth to speak.

But Judy had recognized that approaching sound. It was a voice, two voices, two voices that belonged to the last two mammals she would ever want to find her in a situation like this.

She dropped everything she was holding and was over to Nick, her paws on his muzzle muffling him before he could make a sound.

"Shhh!" she hissed desperately at him and shot a terrified glance back at the door, where, despite the loud sound of the shower the two voices were growing distinct.

"Stewart Hopps!" came a shout loud enough that even Nick's ears perked, hearing the reprimand, though Judy doubted he hear what came after as she could barely make it out over the shower.

"That boy has been through enough,"

"But Bonnie…"

"No buts! We've talked about this and you know you don't have a leg to stand on. I'm putting my foot down! I will _not_ tolerate this kind of prejudice in our house; I know you're better than that Stu! You were there when we talked to his parents yesterday, you know what was happening to him in Zootopia, you even saw how he got bullied on his first day out here! I'll not have that happen to him in our house! Not on my watch."

"maybe… maybe I overreacted because he's a fox, but Bonnie, that not the issue. He's after our daughter!"

"Yes, and that's exactly how my dad described you too!"

"That's not fair!"

"Stu, stop looking at him like a thief trying to steal Judy away. He's clearly in love with her and doesn't know how to handle it; He can barely look at her without getting embarrassed. And she's not going to stay here forever; By Carrots, she's might even be going to the ZPD academy next year!"

"No she won't, they won't accept her. She's a _bunny_!"

"That's not what Sheriff Prongs told me." The voices had stopped approaching for the moment. Nick carefully removed one of her paws and whispered to her, his own voice frightened.

" _Judy, Is that your parents?_ "

She nodded fearfully and shushed him, straining her ears to hear and praying that they would just keep walking and go away.

"Stu, our girl is growing up. I know you worry about her, we both do. We've been worrying about her for years. But she'd almost an adult. We're not going to be able to keep her here, bundled up and safe forever."

"And why _not_?"

"Well for one reason, you and I both know that there isn't _any_ way out of that marriage contact for her now. They're _going_ to be getting married whether we like it or not."

" _But! But…_ "

"Stu, haven't you seen the way they look at each other? They even _marked_ each other _unconsciously_ while _asleep_! You think anything is going to keep them apart if they're _that_ emotionally attached to each other? Would you rather have her happily married to that _fox_ , or unhappily married to some buck?"

"…"

"Stewart, don't you remember how they were as kits? They were just like us, except then they got split apart from each other until now. It's clear that their little _incident_ back then was more than just some passing kittish crush now that we're looking back on it in hindsight. It sure explains why Judy's never been interested in any other bucks."

"It's not the same!"

"Your right, It's not. We grew up together, went to school together, did everything together. Despite everything our parents tried, _they_ never managed to spilt us up. Nick and Judy just met again after _years_ spent apart, and now despite how they feel about each other, they're flailing around in the dark trying to reconnect. The best thing we can do is give them some space. They have enough problems to deal with already, especially with how we've mucked things up for them by separating them, so stop treating Nicholas like some scoundrel. It's not only unfair to him, but it's going to hurt _both_ of them."

"Alright, Bonnie. I'll… I'll try, I really will. But what if things _don't_ work out between them? What then?"

A laugh, "Stu, you're worrying about a bridge they've already crossed. Now come on, we need to give Nicholas the clothes that Mrs. Gray dropped off for him, and you need to give him an apology."

Judy's eyes went wide having heard that list bit clearly.

" _Nick!_ " Judy hissed in a frantic whisper, " _They're coming HERE to give you your clothes, if they see us we're dead!"_

Nick gave her one look, his expression shifting from worried to terrified before he started frantically looking around the bathroom.

Judy didn't even bother looking. She'd been using these bathrooms her entire life, there wasn't anywhere in the room that she could hide, not even behind the shower curtain since it was opaque. She looked up at Nick feeling a wave of dread wash over her as he looked back at her clearly panicked and asked desperately, " _Judy, what do we do?_ "

She looked back at him, the water still beating down at his larger lanky form and was about to tell him she didn't know when an idea struck her. There was _one_ thing different about this room right now, _one_ thing she might be able to hide behind especially with the curtain to obscure the view.

Judy hopped into the shower, yanking the curtain closed.

" _Judy?_ " Nick asked, confusion mixing with his terror.

There was an angry, _very_ angry, terrifyingly angry, shout from her mom outside the bathroom, that was clearly audible.

"You see this Stu! Someone thought it would be funny to lock Nicholas in the bathroom! One of _our_ children thought that! They probably were mimicking the example you set this morning! I will _NOT_ tolerate _anyone_ bullying anyone else in this family, and Nicholas _IS_ part of our family now!"

There was a cowed, "Your right dear, I… I set a bad example for the kits. I'm sorry."

"You don't need to be telling _me_ your sorry. Take these, and go and apologize, and then come help me. We are going to go round up everyone before the busses get here and get this straighten out!"

Judy plaster herself to the front of Nick, and whispered in a pleading, desperate voice as he looked down at her, shocked and terrified, " _Turn a bit and_ _hide me before my dad comes in!_ "

Nick caught on and angled himself slightly so that most of his body was in-between hers and the curtain while still looking like he was showering.

The was the sound of something being shifted and then the door handle rotating.

"Fox? I mean, Nicholas, I'm coming in to drop off your clothes, alright?" her dad called through the cracked open door.

Judy wrapped her arms around him while laying her head flat against his chest right under his chin and snapped her ears down on his shoulder, doing everything she could to get as close as physically possible to him. The hot water was already all the way on, and she hoped the steam and the opaque curtain would be enough to blur Nick's outline so that her dad wouldn't realize she was in there too.

Nick spoke up in a hesitant, uncertain voice, "Ah, I… sure… Mr. Hopps. Um, thank you?"

The door opened and the closed, and Judy with her cheek lying flat against Nick chest could see to the side enough to catch a glimpse of the blurry shape of her father enter the bathroom. Judy didn't think she'd ever been this scared in her life. She held onto Nick like he was a rock amid a raging storm as the shower sprayed down on them and hoped with all her might that her dad would just drop the clothes off with a quick apology and leave.

Even amongst all that though, Judy couldn't help but notice one other thing. She was able to ignore the feeling of Nick's fur against her and the lithe muscle under that fur, ignore the pounding of his heart that she could hear with her ears flat against him, even ignore the glistening cream and russet color of his coat as the water ran over it making it look like something from movie or one of the full page foldouts from Jessica's not so secret _Bucks & Beaches_ magazine collection. Judy managed to ignore all of that in the face of the certain doom that would follow for her and Nick if her parents caught them together in here. What she wasn't able to ignore as she tried to stay quiet and still against him, barely even breathing, was the smell.

Her short muzzle was right up against his ruff and while the shower had washed away much of his scent and dampened the remainder from what it had been this morning, it had also given his wet fur a subtle change of flavor; It still smelled like Nick, but now it had a deeper muskyness to it, a wilder tang that was intoxicating. That was bad enough, but amid that musky smell that made her want to bury her nose into his ruff for more than just the reason that her father might discover them if they were spotted, there was the linger scent of _her_ mark. All the rest of her scent from their night sleeping together was gone, but her mark remained, seeming unaffected by the shower. Unmistakably her scent, mixing, twining, with his.

Her already sprinting heart picked up its pace a little bit more. She couldn't spare a thought to consider the implications of that in their current circumstance but neither could she purge that smell from her mind as each small breath brought a fresh reminded.

The blurry form of her dad moved.

"Here, I'll… ah, just leave your clothes next to the sink. After school today bonnie, um, Mrs. Hopps is going to take you to the store in town so you can get a toothbrush and whatever else you need." Her dad said awkwardly, placing the clothes on the counter.

Judy could feel how stiff Nick was, could hear his heartbeat, could feel each breath and every subtle change.

Nick took a moment to compose himself, to clear the shakiness out of his breathing before responding.

"Um, Thank you. I, ah, wish I wasn't such a burden on you all."

Her dad seemed to shift his positon, facing the shower and both Judy and Nick's hearts spike as she held her breath.

 _It's just Nick in the shower, nobody else is there, Just the blurry shape of a big tall fox, nobody else,_ she thought, trying to will her dad to not see anything suspicious and leave quickly.

There was a sigh, before her dad spoke, "Fo-… Nicholas, l… I owe you an apology." Her dad seemed to think hard before he continued, "I haven't treated you the way I should, even for someone chasing my _daugh_ -" he stopped, took a breath and tried again. "I haven't treated you fairly. I'm sorry about that and I'll try to do better."

Nick's heart was pounding. Judy heard a small hitch in his breath, and the small swallow before he replied. "I, ah, I could have probably met you under better circumstances, sir. No need to apologize."

Her dad looked like he was scratching the back of his head, like he did when something flummoxed him.

"Well, you have it anyway son- um, Nicholas."

For a few seconds, it looked like that might be the end of it, but then her dad spoke up again.

"But I want to be clear on something. You'll be staying here and I'll do my best to treat you like family, but that doesn't give you the right to just go do whatever you please with my daughter, do you understand?" he said sounding as stern as Judy had ever heard him.

Nick's head nodded quickly, and he let out a hurried, "Yes, sir." while his heart rate skyrocketed.

"You might be engaged to my little girl, but you and her are still living in my burrow. You'll be respectful to her, and if you are serious about having _any_ sort of relationship with her, then you'd better treat her like a princess." Judy could just make out her dad pointing his paw at them as he spoke in a voice that promised retribution if not headed. "You'll court her properly, no shenanigans, no staying out late with her, no secret rendezvous, _no sneaking into her bed!_ And if I catch _one_ _hint_ that you've mistreated her, that you haven't looked out for her properly or let something happen to her… _"_ he finished more ominously than Judy had ever remembered her dad being.

"I'd never do anything to hurt her!" Nick said quickly, his voice a little high and frightened as his arms, which had been lightly holding her before, tightened. His heart was pounding away in his chest, "I swear. I won't let anything happen to her. She's… She's my friend. I'll always be there for her."

Judy's own heart skipped a beat, seeming to jump and freeze, before beating away madly. A small shiver ran through her from her ears to the tip of her tail, which twitched, and suddenly it was like Nick's scent tripled in strength despite the water still pouring down on them.

"You'd better," Her father said threateningly, "And don't you dare go looking for more than a kiss on the cheek from her, I can see your little guy bounce just thinking about my little girl."

Nick let out a stifled yelp and his tail whipped around to wrap about Judy, covering her rear and twitching tail. She had to close her eyes and bite down on her lip to not make a sound as his tail, ridiculously soft even while soaked, brushed up against her exposed flank.

"Hiding it won't make it disappear, I'm no young buck but I remember what it's like; So you'd better not even _think_ about letting _him_ near my daughter, our I'll introduce _him_ to my pitchfork."

Nick's hold on her tightened even more as Judy tried to press herself flat against him; even his tail pulled close against her as he squeaked, "Yes, sir."

It was only then, with her dad bringing it up while she was using Nick to hide from him and trying to not think about how he smelled or felt that she noticed something else, something hard and hot pressed tight between them, only stopped from pressing right up against her by her shirt. Judy's face started to burn but she didn't dare move or make a sound.

"Good, I think we have an understanding. My wife seems to think well of you and I trust her opinion more than my own, so I'm going to give you a chance to prove that your worthy of my little girl. Trust out here is earned, not given, so I'd better see you treating her like she deserves… _or else_. I'll trust my wife when she says to let you into our family, but I'm still going to keep an eye on you, youngster, until you prove yourself to me, don't think I won't. Bonnie isn't always right, why she was going on about how thin you were and how we need to get some meat on your bones! But from what I can see here you don't look 'thin as a rail'." He gave a huff and Judy saw his blurry image through the curtain, turn toward the door.

"Treat my family right, treat my _daughter_ right, and we'll get along just fine. Any questions?" He said back toward them.

Nick shook his head even though her dad wasn't looking at them, and gave a quick, "No, sir."

"Good. Seems like you might, just _might_ mind you, shape up to be a worthy of my daughter… someday… _maybe_." Her dad finished and headed for the door.

Judy was nearly holding her breath, the giddy sensation that they were not about to be discovered clashing with the part of her that warned her not to count the carrots before they'd been pulled.

Her dad's blurred arm reached out to the door handle and opened the door, then stopped.

"Whose clothes are those?" he asked, his voice back to his normal tone, no longer that, 'I'll eat the soul of anyone who comes after my daughters' tone, though that didn't stop her heart or Nick's it seemed, from stopping dead for a few seconds.

"Um, I think someone left them in here?" Nick managed to say in a surprisingly level voice considering their situation and the fact that he was nearly shaking like she was against him.

"Humm… Everyone should know better than to leave their dirty clothes in the bathrooms. Might have to give them all another reminder… Well never mind," Judy was pretty sure by the movement of the blurr she could see through the curtain that her father had just reached down to collect her clothes, "I'll take care of these. You need to hurry and finish cleaning up or you're going to be late."

And with that he left and closed the door. Judy didn't so much as breath as her ears popped up and angled to listen for the sounds of the retreating steps of her father until she couldn't hear them anymore. Then she waited longer just to make sure.

Finally, she couldn't hold her breath any longer. And with a large exhale and inhale she looked up at Nick. His eyes were wide, the green sparkling as he looked down at her with a face of near wonder, and whispered, " _Did we just survive that?_ "

The giddy euphoric feeling of surviving certain doom was starting to wash over her, and she couldn't help but grin back up at him.

"I think so," she said with a giggle, as the relief crashed over her, and he smiled.

It was that smile, she later decided that was what did it. She was so close to him, with his arms and tail wrapped around her, his scent wild and fresh, his eyes sparkling with the same elated joy at having survived the impossible that she was feeling; that smile was what made her lose her mind.

She kissed him.

Nick was just looking down at her happily and all Judy had to do was rise on her hind paws slightly. It had been so easy. One moment he was just looking at her, smiling and then her mouth was against his. It wasn't a deep kiss, or a long kiss, it wasn't even a very good kiss since she didn't have much practice. But there was no deny that it _was_ a kiss, and no denying that he was kissing her _back_.

Then the kiss ended and reality crashed back down on her, breaking that little timeless bubble of euphoria.


	14. Chapter 13 – Onto the Coals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I ran into a problem with my escape attempt, mainly how to escape when your out in the middle of the ocean. I might have planned that a little better. Sigh. Maybe there will be better chances to escape over at this conspiracy operation I'm being temperately assigned too.
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: Um... hey whats that over there? (points to side and runs in other direction)

 

Judy was in a shower, wearing only a wet T-shirt, holding and being held by a _completely_ naked fox, okay a hot, attractive, fox that smelled good enough to eat… that was also _technically_ her fiancé, but a fox she barely knew. A fox that was looking at her with the same startled, confused and conflictedly happy expression she was sure was on her face. A _male_ fox, she suddenly became all too aware of, as her face started burning with mind searing embarrassment as part of him shifted ever so slightly, pushing her shirt against a sensitive area.

The wave of giddy elated relief was receding only for a tsunami of embarrassment to replace it as she considered what Nick must think of her for just jumping in the shower like that and then kissing him out of the blue.

There was a small part of her, a teeny _tiny_ irresponsible part, one that she'd never even known existed, that wanted her to simply forget everything, hang the consequences and just keep kissing him, to completely let herself go. That voice was accompanied by a hot wave that made her flush for a whole different reason, as instincts that were usually quiet and undemanding for her seemed sit up and take notice.

It wasn't like Judy had never felt attracted to anyone before, hadn't debated with her sisters about this or that buck, or even hadn't secretly looked at a magazine or website that her classmates only ever talked about in hushed whispers and giggles. But she'd never really understood why it was _such_ a big deal with everyone, sure it was fun, but she honestly enjoyed reading her secret romance books more than that. The hot flush that ran through her now though was orders of magnitude more than anything she'd ever experienced before.

It was so much more, so unexpected, that the sheer startling surprise of it was like a cold slap to the face.

That slight shift between them wasn't just felt by her either, judging by how the inside of Nick's ears turned beat red and his eyes went wide with embarrassed horror.

"Um…" Judy started to say, trying to think about how to deescalate the situation.

" _Sorry!_ " Nick quickly squeaked and let go of her. He tried to step back so that he wasn't pressed right up against her, but her arms where still holding him and his tail was still wrapped around her. His backward step only dragged her a step forward with him and caused their bodies to rub against each other.

Her ears burning as much as her face, Judy let go as well and stepped back while Nick snatched his tail away with his paws like it was a unruly child and used it to try covering up his quite obvious erection as they put some space between themselves.

"Um… sorry I kissed you, I shouldn't have. Just with escaping that and…" Judy said, looking at Nick, who was so red it was even showing through his fur. She couldn't help the but steal a glance lower where both his paws and his tail was covering his lower parts.

She could feel her own face heat up more and was surprised that the water hitting it wasn't evaporating instantly. Judy tried rallying her wits to handle this in a mature fashion.

"look… um… Nick, there's nothing to, um… be embarrassed about." She couldn't help her own paw from tugging on her shirt to try cover herself a bit more, while she stole another glance, "It's… it's, just a completely normal reaction." She finished lamely trying to look away from him and not doing a very good job of it.

" _No_ , no it isn't!" Nick nearly shouted, taking one look at her before looking down at the tub floor, mortified, "This is _not_ a normal reaction!"

Judy could understand his embarrassment, rationally understand it at least, but his remark stung somewhere deep in a way she didn't fully understand.

"Why?! It's not normal because I'm just some _plain_ looking _bunny_?!" She'd shot back before she'd thought about what she was saying, "Sorry if being near me disgusts you!" She said feeling her eyes starting to water.

She couldn't believe she'd kissed him, that she thought he was handsome, that she…

Judy started to turn, to get out of the shower, to get as far away from Nick as possible.

" _Judy_!" Nick said in a pleading, exasperated and embarrassed tone, "I don't care what you are! Why would you think that being a cute bunny would disgust me?!"

She stopped before she got out of the shower and looked back at him, her insides a confused mess of feelings.

_Cute? Did he just call me cute? Like for real cute?_

_Then why was he acting like being attracted to me would be something so wrong?_

_Does he really think I'm Cute? I'm not cute, Jessica is 'cute'._

_If me being a bunny doesn't disgust him, why was he acting that way?_

"Well you seem to find something about being near me _unnatural_ ," Judy said stiffly trying hard not to cry.

Nick looked at her like he couldn't believe she didn't understand as a myriad of emotions played across his face; embarrassment, frustration, desperation, and whole slew of others.

"Because _that._ isn't. normal!" he said, his very red ears pinning back as he shuffled slightly trying to make sure his paws and tail were covering himself.

"Oh, it's not normal! Your right, I'm just a _bunny_ , I guess it's not right, not _normal_ , for you to like me or me to like you!" Judy retorted, feeling her eyes well up again as something deep inside hurt.

"NO!" Nick said, his paws coming up to grab his ears like he wanted to yanks his fur out, "No, No, No! You don't get it! It's _not_ normal. Not because you're a bunny! Not because I don't like you! I'm a _fox,_ Judy, _this_ _isn't normal!_ "

Nick sat down suddenly and brought his knees up to his chest his tail wrapping around himself as he started to shake.

Judy looked at him, now feeling completely confused. It wasn't normal because he was a fox? How was that any different than it not being normal because she was a bunny? And what did he mean by 'like' her? There was still a small aching pain in her chest, but Nick looked so miserably depressed and upset that it tore at her, hurting far more than that aching pain did.

She didn't understand what was distressing him so much, she wanted to stay angry because that made her own pain hurt less, gave her something else to focus on besides that hurt but she just couldn't leave Nick like that.

With a breath, she let the rest of the hurt anger go and went over to sit next to Nick. She brought her own knees up to her chest and hugged them with her arms since she couldn't with her tail. The shower tub wasn't really big enough for both of them to sit in it and her side was pressed up to his. She could feel him shaking but he'd lowered his head to rest it on his knees and closed his eyes.

She couldn't tell with the shower running if it was just water or if there were tears mixed in with the drops that ran down his face, but after a little while she felt his shaking subside.

"Care to try to explain that, 'Its' not you being a bunny, it's me being a fox'?" she asked after a few more moments.

"No, not really," he replied quietly.

"Nick, I don't understand." She said in almost as quiet of a voice, though she couldn't hold back a bit of hurt confusion, "I want to be your friend, I don't want this to come between us. What's the issue with us maybe feeling a little attracted to each other?" She couldn't look at him directly and she could feel herself start to ramble as she put a paw up to hold down her ears in an unconscious nervous gesture, "We're in _highschool_ , of course we're going to find other mammals attractive. That's completely normal. I'm sure there are others at school that you think are attractive as well, shesh, someone as handsome as you from the city? I'm sure you had a bunch of prettier girls than me hanging around you all the time-"

Nick gave a snort at that, "I think your impression of the city is a little different that mine." He said, and continued after a moment, "I don't want to lose my only friend out here, I don't really have many friends to begin with anyway; It's not that I don't think your pretty or find you attractive, I don't care that you're a bunny either. It's… this is…" he let out a defeated sigh, "Judy, it's… a fox thing."

Judy didn't know when their paws had ended up holding each other's but she found it comforting. The way he was holding onto her paw reassured her that he meant what he said, that she wasn't going to lose her new friend. She still didn't understand what the big deal was and wanted to ask him to explain but she stopped herself. Whatever it was, he was having a hard enough time with it right now. She squeezed his paw back to show him that she was there for him and simply said, "okay."

He gave her paw a return squeeze, before he shifted and gave her a hug, murmuring, "Thanks."

She hadn't been expecting it and found herself hugging him back. That 'thanks' had sounded so relieved and she could feel the tension and distress leaving him, so she didn't mind.

In fact, Judy found herself melting into his warm hug, her arms wrapping around his chest and her nose buried into his neck smelling that wild musky scent of his. Nick's arms holding her and his head against hers felt so comforting that she found herself wishing that the hug had lasted longer as he finally pulled away.

Nick looked at her an almost smile on his face, and then he blushed hard and looked away.

"I'll… um…" He got up, his tail wrapping around his front, "I'll… ah, let you actually shower, we'd better hurry up if we aren't going to be late." He said, quickly exiting the shower.

"Um… right. Shower." Judy only realized she'd been staring at his back and rear when the shower curtain cut off her view. She snapped herself out of her daze and got up, removed her shirt and reached for the bottle of fur shampoo as she heard Nick start to drying himself off with a towel.

…

Judy focused her wandering mind at the task at hand and ended up taking what was probably the fastest shower of her life. By the time she'd finished rinsing out her fur, Nick had only just finished dressing.

She turned the water off, and stuck her head around the curtain.

"Nick, ah…" she momentarily forgot what she was going to say as her eyes trained on him. He was wearing a normal pair of blue jeans and a casual shirt with a collar, but something about the way the clothes fit him and how his long tail gracefully swept down to hang above the floor, only for its dark tip to sway back and forth, caught her eyes and made them stick.

He finished buttoning his shirt and turned giving her a smile like he had before. A smile that sent a unexpected thrill through her.

_Earth to bunny? Earth to bunny?! Respond! Your ogling your friend!_

She snapped out of her trance and to cover herself quickly asked, "Um, you mind handing me a towel?"

"Sure," Nick turned to the towel rack only to freeze, "Um, Judy?" he said not seeming sure how to continue, though she could clearly see the problem, should have seen it coming earlier since she'd grabbed the last towel off the rack when she'd hastily dried herself so she wouldn't be dripping water in the hallway.

"I am going to kill my sister," Judy ground out. She wasn't absolutely sure whether it was her sisters fault but she wouldn't put it past her either.

She sighed in defeat and waved her paw. "Hand it over, we don't have enough time to deal with this. We need to get out of here before my parents come back to check up on us."

Nick gave her the damp towel with a dubious expression and she retreated behind the shower curtain to dry off.

Judy couldn't help the blush that rose as she used the towel, drying herself as best as she could. She'd only used it to do a cursory drying of herself earlier and probably hadn't left much scent on it. Nick though, had thoroughly dried himself with it and despite having just showered, the towel now faintly but distinctly smelled like him.

As she dried herself the constant faint foxy musk on the towel made her continuously blush. She was hoping that it wouldn't leave much of his scent on her or at least no more than could be explained by normal contact, but as she finished drying her head and ears she realized that she didn't need to worry about that at all. Sure, the towel might be leaving a faint trace of Nick's scent on her, but compared to the strong scent of his mark on her head that she could still clearly smell despite the shower, the little trace scent from the towel was nothing.

"Hey, Judy?" Nick asked sounding a bit nervous.

"Ya, what's up?" she answered only paying partial attention to him while she tried to think about how she was going to explain a _carrot freaking scent mark_ away. She wondered if Sharla would believe that he tripped while day dreaming about some girl and fell on her head.

 _That sounds ludicrous even in here, anyway she already knows you two slept in the same bed together._ Her mind unhelpfully reminded her before Nick replied saying, "I think your dad took your change of clothes."

"Uurgh!" Judy growled in frustration, realizing she should have also already been aware of that little problem too. She buried her face in the towel trying not to scream. Why couldn't Serendipity help her out a little? It was like Murphy was out to make her life as hard as possible right now.

Breathing in Nick's scent from the towel actually helped calm her down, though she had no idea why and the fact that it did only frustrated her more.

She took in one last breath from the towel, then one more, and finished drying. She wrapped the towel around her waist making sure that everything that should be, was covered and after wringing out her wet t-shirt, stepped out of the shower.

"Okay, we need to get out of here without being seen and I need to get back to my room to get clothes," Judy said going over to the door.

"Want me to check to make sure the coast is clear?" Nick asked.

"Let me see what I can hear first." Judy said, placing a long ear up against the door.

She listened and after hearing nothing stood back and nodded to Nick who went over and carefully cracked the door open, checking the hallway outside.

"Were good Carrots," he said pulling his head back and opening the door all the way, "Quick, let's roll, before anyone comes by." He grabbed her paw and hurried out of the bathroom leading her.

Judy was trying to control her reaction to his sudden move taking her paw like that. The contact and their rush down the hallway sent a jolt of adrenaline and excitement through her. It made their quiet run down the corridor seem more like some wild adventure or daring escape. And unfortunately, just like some wild adventure from a long lost tale, disaster seemed to come at just the wrong instant. They were most the way to her room when Judy heard her mom's voice call out for them from the other hallway near the bathrooms

"Judy? Nicholas? Are you two done getting ready, the busses are going to be here soon."

A spike of fear and panic ran through her as she heard the voice getting closer to the intersection of the hallways, where she'd be able to see them. But before Judy could do anything, the view of her world shifted, swinging around as she found herself swept off her feet and into Nick's arms, while he took off running. Running though was an understatement. Sprinting was the proper term but Judy felt like that was also inadequate as Nick barreled down the corridor seeming almost to fly. She looked up only to see his jaw set with a look of frightened determination on his face. And in what seemed like an instant latter he was throwing her door open and leaping through it, just as Judy heard her mother's voice round the corner.

"Quick! Get dressed!" Nick said putting her down and turning back to shut the door as quickly and quietly as he could.

Judy's heart was pounding with a mix of excitement and fear and who knew what else. Nick glanced back at her as he finished shutting the door.

"Carrots! What are you waiting for?"

She blushed hard and turned scrambling for her dresser, stripping of the towel. She glanced back to see Nick quickly looking away and his ears red.

"Don't you dare watch!" she said warningly as she grabbed her underwear putting them on.

"I'm not! I'm not! Just hurry, she's coming down the hall!" Nick replied more than a little embarrassed, just as there was another call from out in the hallway getting closer.

"Nick? Judy?"

"pants, pants, pants…" Judy mumbled to herself yanking open another dresser drawer.

"Carrots you got like ten seconds!" Nick said desperate though he kept his voice low.

"Nick, go over to my desk and grab my bookbag like you're in here helping me." Judy said pulling out a shirt.

She'd just managed to get the shirt on and was straightening it when there was a knock on her door.

"Judy, you in there?" the door opened and Judy turned around trying to control her breathing.

"Ya, sorry about waking up late mom! I'm ready, Nick was just helping me grab my stuff."

Her mom looked over at Nick by her desk, "Oh good. Both of you are here. We're getting everyone together out front for a little meeting before the busses arrive, now come along," Her mother started to around toward the hallway but stopped mid-way only to turned back to give Judy another look, this one a rather careful inspecting look.

"Judith," her mother started and Judy's heart seemed to freeze expecting disaster. "You didn't even groom out your fur!"

Her heart started beating again, only to speed up as her mother shook her head and walked back into the room and over to her dresser, where she picked up a brush.

"You can't go off to school looking like you walked through a wind storm!" her mother snagged her before she'd managed to form any sort of protest and started brushing out the fur on her head.

" _Moooom_! I can take care of that myself, you don't have to treat me like a little kit!" Judy tried objecting and squirming away though that didn't do any good.

"Then you should have done it yourself," her mother replied unfazed and finished with her head and started brushing her tail, causing her to Meep as the brush pulled out a tangle in her fur.

There was an amused snicker from over at her desk.

" _Not Funny Nick!_ " Judy said shooting him a glare as her mother tended to her like she was still a little kit, all her protest utterly useless and not even slowing her mother down.

"Don't worry dear, your fur is just as ruffled as hers, I'll get to you next," Her mother said to Nick, which shut him right up.

It might be humiliating to have her mother groom her at her age, Judy thought, but it was hilarious watching her mother groom Nick. She couldn't help but snicker as she watched him as he squirmed in turn while her mother handled the larger fox as easily as she would any of Judy's younger siblings.

"There, see? Now you two look ready for the day" Her mother said putting the brush back on the dresser, "Come on you two let's get going."

She walked past Judy toward the door, stopping only momentarily to pick up the wet towel and wrinkled t-shirt from where Judy had dropped them.

"You know not to leave wet towels and dirty clothes on the floor, Judy," her mother said as she led them out the door and down the corridor, "It's bad for the carpets, and it's not that hard for you to just put them in the dirty laundry hamper."

She stopped at the open closet at the end of the corridor pulling out a clothes hamper. Right before she dropped them in she stopped, frowning and reached in pulling out a shirt.

"Judy, I thought this was what you were going to wear today?" Her mother said looking back on her, and she tried desperately to keep her face looking innocent. Her mother wasn't buying it though, given the way her expression was changing to 'someone raided the cookie jar and are those crumbs on your paws?' Then to Judy's dismay, her mother's nose twitched, then twitched again and she turned lifting the towel to take a sniff. She looked at the clothes in the hamper, the towel, a closer look at the wrinkled and damp t-shirt and then back at both Judy and Nick with that 'care to explain' patented mother look and waited.

Judy shot a desperate look over at Nick next to her still holding her bookbag, but his ears where pinned back with a grimly frightened look on his muzzle. He gave her a quick glance back that clearly said he didn't have any better idea how to get out of this than she did.

Her mom pointedly picked up the shirt Judy had grabbed when fleeing her room and mother earlier this morning, and held it like evidence at a trial.

"Stu, said something about needing to remind the highschoolers not to leave clothes in the bathrooms, something about having to pick up clothes out of the bathroom when dropping off Nick's."

She looked back at them her eyebrow raised. Judy kept her mouth shut tight determined not to say anything.

Her mother raised the towel and wet t-shirt up in her other paw, "Care to explain this? I'm rather interested in why it smells like both of you."

Judy couldn't help but squirm under her mother's gaze and she heard Nick shuffle awkwardly beside her. They shot each other desperate glances that probably only confirmed her mother's suspicions, though neither of them said a word.

"Right." Her mother sighed, before looking at them sternly, "You two didn't do anything like oh, let's say _makeout_ in the shower, did you?"

Judy, despite her best efforts not to react, could feel her eyes go wide with fright. Nick beside her flinched and made a quiet choking sound.

Her mother's gaze narrowed and her foot started thumping. They broke.

" _It was only one kiss, that was it!_ _ **Nothing**_ _else happened_!" she pleaded as Nick desperately said, " _I swear I didn't take advantage of her_!"

Another hard gaze from her mother before a nod, "What about the chair against the door?"

Judy shared another desperate glance with Nick though they were both blushing badly.

"Jessica locked us in together." Judy mumbled looking away from Nick and toward the ground, her cheeks feeling like they were on fire.

"Did she now." Her mother said flatly before tossing the clothes in the laundry hamper and pushing it back into the open closet.

"Come on you two, morning kissing sessions in the shower will not get you an excused tardy pass to school." She said and led them still blushing toward the front door.

…

Outside the sun was still just making its way over the horizon lighting up the front yard where groups of bunnies huddled talking to each other while the kerfluffle swept like a living tidal wave around and between the older bunnies.

Judy grabbed Nick's paw and was about to try slinking away from her apparently omniscient mother with him. They needed to talk and try to do some damage control for the upcoming day anyway, but before she got more than a step away her mother stopped them.

"Hold on you two. I want you right here. We have a little family meeting that needs to take place." She cleared her throat, "Stu? Stewart? I have them, did you get everyone else?"

Judy's father waded his way through the kerfluffle and up to them on the porch.

"Everyone else is here Bonnie." He said fiddling with his hat and then glanced at them, before doing a double take to stare at their clasped paws.

Judy meeped and Nick gave a quiet yelp and they both quickly released each other's paw trying to look like nothing had happened.

"Everyone quiet down," Judy's mom said loudly and the noise of the crowd calmed as all the older bunnies stopped talking and turned to look toward the porch. It took the groups of other highschoolers the longest to stop chatting, but after a few moments the only noise was the constant rumble of the kerfluffle.

"Kits! Do you want desert tonight?" Bonnie called and the kerfluffle seemed to take notice rolling in the porches direction with gaining momentum and calls of 'Yay, Desert!', 'Cake!', 'Cookies!'.

"If you want desert you need to listen. Now stand take a seat," the kerfuffle obediently sat with more cheers about desert, "Quiet down and ears up." The kerfluffle quieted and in one almost synchronist move all the little bunnies' ears shot up and swiveled to face the porch.

"Okay, everyone," her mom started, speaking to the whole crowd, "There have been all sorts of rumors running around since yesterday, so we are going to get all of that straightened out. For those of you who haven't met him, this," she gestured at Nick standing petrified next to Judy, "is Nicholas Wilde." There was murmuring among the crowd which Bonnie silenced with a look, "He will be staying here with us for the rest of the school year. For all of you who don't already know, he and Judith are engaged, so I expect you _all_ to treat him _not just_ as you would a guest in our house but as a _member_ of this family."

Besides the murmuring this caused there was a loud grumble and a thump as an old bunny that had been sitting in a rocking chair further down the porch stood up, his cane thumping as he made his way over to them where he stopped. The stooped old buck gave Nick a look up and down as if confirming what he was actually seeing before huffing and in an old quavering but surprisingly strong voice said, "And why should we go treating this _fox_ like part of our family, Bonnie? Look at him! He's a _Fox_! You know why their _red_ , it's because the _Devil_ made them!" he finished waving his cane menacingly in Nick's direction.

The injustice of that kind of stereotypical remark touched a nerve in Judy and she stepped between Nick and the pointing cane and angrily said back, "Pop pop, you know that's rubbish!"

She would have continued but her mother put a paw on her shoulder stopping her.

"Dad," her mother said to the old rabbit quiet calmly, "Not only have both Stu and I, along with Nicholas's parents, agreed to this but they've already marked each other," that sent up a louder murmur among the crowd while the kurfluffle started debating amongst itself trying to figure out what a 'mark' was. Judy went from angry to utterly embarrassed and tried to shuffle back out of the view of the whole crowd but ended up shuffling right back up into Nick. They glanced at each other and then quickly took a step apart as they glanced away, both blushing furiously.

"That doesn't make him any less of a red devil!" the bunny said obstinately and thumping his cane on the ground.

"Well it makes him _our_ red devil, dad." Bonnie continued, "Anyway, he can't be any worse than Stu can he?"

The old rabbit gave Judy's dad a pointed look and harrumphed, before muttering loudly, "Can't possibly be worse than that demon spawn." He gave Stu an icy glare, "At least that _fox_ didn't try _running away_ with her."

Judy's father crossed his arms and harrumphed back, "That was decades ago! I thought we'd got over that, ya old geezer."

"Gotten over that, pipsqueak? No, I forgave you. I didn't get over it, why do you think I tell all my grandkits that tale if not to warn them what they shouldn't do?!" The old bunny said and they glared at each other, before the old bunny turned to Nick his cane coming up dangerously

"You there, _fox_. Are you going to run off with her?"

Nick shook his head quickly and with a gulp said, "No, sir."

"You going to get her pregnant before the wedding?"

Nick let out a strangled yelp, shaking his head faster and barely managed to squeak out another, 'no sir'.

The cane swung over to whack Stu on this cap before it thumped back onto the ground again while Stu let out a loud 'Oww!', rubbing his head and glaring at the older rabbit.

"See there, _pipsqueak_? Red devil or not he's already gotten you beaten twice _and_ he's got far better manners than you. You could probably learn a thing or two from that devil pup." The old bunny thumped his way over until he was right in front of Nick, who looked _very_ worried.

The old bunny's cane came up, and Nick filched slightly, but the cane didn't whack him. Instead the old bunny prodded him with it, first in the leg, then the stomach and chest and then on his arm before it finally came up and moved his chin up and side to side like the old bunny was inspecting him.

"Humm… He might do Bonnie," the old bunny said to Judy's mom, "Might make a proper buck out of him, unlike _that_ one," he shot a look at Stu, who just grumbled and rubbed his head, before he looked back at Nick. " _Boy_ , are you going to treat her," he gestured at Judy," and this family properly?"

Nick nodded fervently.

"Good, then I think we'll get along just fine, you and me, devil." The old bunny said and thumped his way back over to his rocking chair.

Judy's mother looked rather pleased with how that turned out and face the crowd of bunnies again, "See, even Pop pop can accept having Nicholas in our family. It doesn't matter that he's a fox, he's one of us, and we _will_ all treat him just like we treat everyone else in our family because he _is_ family. Any questions?" she waited for a moment, "Good. Oh and _Jessica_ , you and I will have a little chat when you get home from school, understand?"

There was a desperate shout of, "I didn't put that chair there!" from one of the highschool age groups of Judy's siblings.

"Chair. I didn't say anything about a chair now did I?" there was an audible gulp from the direction of the voice before Bonnie continued, "I guess we'll have to talk about that chair tonight too then. Make sure your home on time, understand Jessica?"

There was a dejected, "Yes, mom."

Bonnie turned away from the crowd of bunnies which was already talking amongst themselves once again, and faced Judy and Nick.

Judy was trying to prepare herself for what embarrassment might be about to befall them next when she was blindsided by the kerfluffle.

"Judy!", "Nicky!", "What's a mark?", "His tail's so long!"

The tidal wave washed over her and she heard Nick getting swept under with a startled yelp.

"His tails Fluffy!", "When are you two getting married?", "I want to feel it!", "They smell like each other!"

"Judy! *Yelp* Careful with that! _Carrooots_ , Help!" Nick's pleading voice came from somewhere else underneath the pile of kits.

"guys, hey, calm down, take it easy on Nick. Mark, stop smelling my head!"

"He's got short ears", "let's find where they marked each other!", "hey, both their ears have black tips, is that it?", "It _is_ FLUFFY!"

" _JUDYYY!"_ came Nick's desperate drowning cry.


	15. Chapter 14 – Off to School! Day Two!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dear readers, I write to you as I huddle in the bilge of one of the WildeHopps Navy ships hiding in fear (the fact that I think a WildeHopps Navy ship is a safe place at the moment should tell you how scared I am). That assignment I was reassigned to temporarily really was a conspiracy, in fact it was, is, a city ending conspiracy, maybe 'The Conspiracy' of all time. So make sure you're wearing your tin foil anti-fluff hats because I was there, I know whats going to happen *shudder* and it's not pretty. Who builds a fluff Nuke anyway?! They're All Crazy! And I think Fox in the Hen House is laughing in glee at what is about to happen because that story is only a few chapters from being over. Now if I can just stow away on one of the Navy submarines I might survive the Fluffpocalypse.
> 
> Disclaimer: Disney, I didn't want to have any part of this. Will you please let me into your bunker? Pretty please, with blueberries and carrots?
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: The guy I bought my tin foil hat from also says it will stop the petty officer and Typo-Thumper from finding me.

"That was the _single_ most terrifying thing I have ever been through." Nick said with a shudder as he bordered the bus.

Judy didn't think it had been _that_ bad, though she hadn't been hit with the brunt of the Kerfluffleanche… and she was used to it having grown up with the kerfluffle… _and_ Nick's tail was really, like super really, fluffy. She could understand why her younger siblings had all wanted to feel it. Heck, she was having a hard time just trying not to think about how it had felt yesterday under the tree… and this morning in bed… _and_ how it was even fluffy while soaking wet in the shower, which she though should have been impossible.

_It's like his tail's fluffiness violates the laws of physics._

_Maybe it's his superpower,_ she almost giggled at the thought, _His tail has a 'fluffy' superpower._

She shook her head trying to clear it and absent mindedly followed Nick as he staggered his way toward a seat in the back. He did look rather… rumpled. It had taken the efforts of both her mother and father and threats about rescinding desert to finally get the hoard off of Nick.

"I thought I was going to drown!" Nick said with a gasp like he was still short of air and flopped down into an empty row, dropping the bookbag and lunch her mother had handed him after she'd rescued Nick from the kerfluffle's grasp.

"Once they get used to you it won't be so bad." Judy said sitting next to him, though Nick just groaned and slumped more in the seat, closing his eyes. Their day hadn't even really started and he looked so worn out already. Seeing Nick like that caused a streak of something like worry or protectiveness to run through her. Judy couldn't really comprehend where that feeling had come from, though maybe she decided, she felt responsible since it had been her siblings that had put him in such a frazzled state. She took one more look at him and his now mussed fur before digging through her own bookbag.

Judy wasn't like Jessica, she didn't carry around a full makeup kit so that she could always touch up her fur but that didn't mean she ignored how she looked. She liked to look just as nice as the next doe and she kept some bare essentials in her book bag for emergencies. Find what she was looking for, Judy pulled out a small grooming brush and first touched up her own fur (particularly her head where Mark had kept sniffing) before turning to Nick, still slumped across the bus seat where he gave the impression of having passed out.

After a second of indecision she took his tail and placed it in her lap, brushing out it's ruffled fur.

Nick for a few seconds didn't response. He actually started to rumble softly before his eyes flew open with a muffled yelp, and he turned looking at Judy with a startled panicked expression.

She gave him a glance, "Sorry if I yanked on a knot, they really did a number on your fur." She said and continued brushing more carefully, looking back at his tail and away from his face. She didn't think she could look at him anymore without breaking out into a raging blush, not with how soft his tail felt in her paws, so she concentrated on the task at hand and started chattering absentmindedly, "You've got nice fur, you shouldn't walk into school looking like you've been through a windstorm."

"That's…" Nick stopped, seeming to be breathing rather hard, "That's not… It's just… that's my tail, Judy!" he finally said sounding extremely embarrassed. He started to reach over as if to take it back but Judy kept brushing it.

"Nick, you just had a couple dozen of my siblings grab it, what's the matter if I touch it?" She said, thankful her voice sounded normal and didn't betray the giddy feeling touching his oh so soft tail was giving her.

"They were little kits! You're not!" Nick said his voice almost growly, and his breaths still coming a bit fast.

"And neither was my mother," Judy said unconcerned.

"That's different!" Nick said after a moment in which he seemed to flounder for an explanation.

Judy roller her eyes, "This isn't any different than what a fur stylist would do." Judy replied casually continuing her work.

Nick opened his mouth as if to reply then snapped it shut. He looked at her for a few more moments and then slumped back in the seat in defeat. Judy glanced at him but needn't have been so cautious because he'd closed his eyes again apparently deciding just to ignore her.

Judy shrugged and continued.

She almost missed noticing his reaction though. Maybe she decided, it wasn't that he was ignoring her but that he was focusing on hiding that reaction, not that it was going to work. Judy had good ears and after a few more strokes of the brush she picked up just the faintest hint of a rumble from the fox. It was almost like a purr but deeper, more of a vibration than a sound. Judy hid a smile; Despite even Gideon she'd never really bought into the paranoia many bunnies, especially the older ones had about predators and 'big bad foxes' and this clinched it. He looked _cute_ trying to hide the fact that getting his tail brushed made him purr. She'd heard and read about how felines and even some canids would purr or rumble when happy but she'd never seen it and guilty had to admit to herself that watching Nick purr fascinated her. Maybe that was the reason she kept brushing his tail long after his fur was back in order.

Judy was so preoccupied that she didn't even notice the whispers in the seats around her or that the bus had stopped again to pick up more students. What did get her attention was the voice from one of her least favorite mammals in the world. And to her surprise it wasn't Jessica.

"See, it's just like I told you Travis. No self-respect at all. If my parents tried to get me to marry some prey mammal especially some loony bunny I'd refuse."

Judy looked up, her mind ripped from thoughts about Nick's tail to see Gideon standing in the isle next to Travis. She was about to respond when there was a snarl from beside her.

Gideon snarled back, "You're a no good preychaser, Nick. I heard about how your parents had to sell your marriage to _bunnies_ to keep your family business afloat but you don't even have the dignity to be ashamed of your situation. You're so eager to screw a bunny you dragged her off minutes after meeting her to makeout _in a closet,_ and now you're literally throwing you're tail at her!" Gideon leaned forward still snarling to say something else and then stopped, a shocked look spreading across his face which was shortly followed by one of disgust and he blurted out loud enough for the entire bus to hear, "You _MARKED her_? Are you an idiot!? Bad enough to have a shame marriage and to go chasing after prey tail but you _actually_ marked her?!"

Nick's tail slipped out of Judy's paws as he stood up moving toward Gideon like he was ready to fight.

"Gid, you fat ass, shut your mouth and get out of my face before I shut it for you. I'm _done_ dealing with your crap."

Gideon's nose twitched again another look of surprised shock rolling across it as Nick moved past Judy.

"And she _marked_ you?! Gods Nick, I can understand why _she_ would do that, not even the bucks around here would screw _her_ and they'd screw just about anything! But why by Karma would you _mark_ her back even after screwing that stupid bun-?!"

Nick's fist collided with Gideon's nose, and the larger fox rocked back eyes wide before they narrowed and he hauled back his own fist.

"Nick!" Judy shot to her feet grabbing onto her fox and trying to haul him away from the other Gideon as a few more blows were exchanged and noticed Travis trying to do the same to Gideon.

The bus had come to a stop and the bus drivers shouts to knock it off joined the commotion and shouts from the students in the other seats watching.

Nick though was too big for Judy to haul away by force so Judy used a trick she'd learned from sheriff prongs and put her foot into the back of Nick's knee causing it to buckle and him to fall backwards with her still pulling on him.

They hit the floor of the bus isle in a sprawl and Judy thought for a second that she'd succeeded in stopping the fight when she saw Gideon, with Travis still trying to haul him away by one arm that now had claws extended, kick towards them, his foot aimed right at her.

The sight of his hindpaw growing in her view as it neared her disappeared as her vision was suddenly filled with russet and cream fur and Judy felt an impact through the body now holding her as Nick grunted in pain.

"Enough!" shouted the voice of the bus driver and Judy managed to shift her head enough to see over Nick's shoulder to were the ram was holding Gideon up by his scruff. He turned around placing the fox on the other side of the center isle from Nick and Judy and pointed a hoof toward the front of the bus.

"Grey, sit your butt down in that from row and don't you make another sound until we get to the school and the principal can deal with you." Gideon looked about to argue but Mr. Horton, the usually kind and smiling driver that liked to joke with the students, gave him a glare and the fox shut his mouth and turned to stalk toward the front of the bus.

"You three," Mr. Horton turned back pointing at Nick and Judy on the floor and Travis, take your seats and don't think about trying to go anywhere until we get to the school and the principal can sort you all out."

With one last look to make sure that his instructions were being followed the ram turned around and walked back toward the drives seat while whispered conversations started erupting among the students.

Judy helped Nick up and back into their seat and could hear Mr. Horton talking over the bus radio, probably to the school, explaining what had just happened.

Nick winced as he sat and Judy looked at him in concern before dropping her eyes. He'd taken that kick meant for her.

"Nick…" she started but not knowing what else to say simply went with, "I'm sorry."

Nick didn't look at her but said back in a clipped voice, "You've got nothing to be sorry for Carrots."

She shook her head, "Nick, you got hurt more because of me, I pulled you back thinking that would end it, but then… then you took that kick aimed at me." she looked down again feeling miserable and muttered, "You shouldn't have."

There was no response and after a few moments Judy glanced up to see Nick looking at her, his expression like a mask, the only things showing a hint of any emotion the two emerald green eyes staring back at her.

"I did what any friend would do," he said still with that mask in place, "Just like a real friend would try stopping me from doing something stupid like fighting with a jerk of a bully… even if he deserved to get his snout punched."

Those two eyes turned away from her and he busied himself with straightening out his clothes and fur.

Judy remembered to breath once those eyes no longer had her trapped, and a flood of confusing emotions washed through her. His face might have been blank but his eyes hadn't been.

She and Nick didn't talk the rest of the way to school but just sat next to each other quietly as the other students continued to whisper in hushed conversations. Judy didn't dare look at Nick as she tried to sort through her thoughts.

In Judy's group of friends, she'd always been the one to stand up and defend them. She'd always been the one protecting, not being protected.

Friends stood up for each other, helped and watched out for each other to the best of their ability. Judy would never expect her best friend Sharla to jump into fight with her, not because her friend didn't want to help her, but because fighting just wasn't in her. Sharla would try getting help, like most of her friends would do. It took something special for a mammal to put themselves in the path of physical danger for another. A special quality of selflessness and fight that not everyone had, not that that made her friends like Sharla any less. They simply had their own ways, own qualities that they used to watch out and protect their friends.

The feeling though, of having someone that was willing, _driven_ , to protect her just as she would for them, even in a real fight, a friend that could stand with her side by side, that had that same special type of drive to protect that she had… She'd never had that before. She'd seen it in Nick's eyes when he'd said that he'd only done what a friend would do. He'd protect his friends from danger, physical or otherwise; she'd bet anything that he'd go out of his way to try and protect even mammals that he didn't know. He was the kind of friend she dreamed about finding on the police force, the kind of friend she'd want as a police partner.

She couldn't help but wonder, almost dream about what it would be like if Nick were to go with her to the academy, to the ZPD, what it would be like to work with him every day so that they could not only protect other mammals but also protect each other.

It was almost like one of her dreams.

And as the bus pulled into the school Judy couldn't help but also think of one other thing. Nick hadn't been lying when he said that, that was what a friend would do… but he hadn't been telling the entire truth either. Despite his mask, she'd understood that, seen something else there in his eyes, something she'd only caught a glimpse of. Something that made her feel like he hadn't done that _only_ because she was his friend.

It made her feel like he would have gone to any length to protect her without even thinking about it, and that thought was one that made Judy's heart beat fast, almost erratically and her breath come in a little ragged.

And with each ragged inhale Judy could smell the faint musky scent of _him_ , from his mark on her.

…

Judy's musings came to an abrupt halt when the bus stopped in front of the school where Mr. Harris the principle was waiting.

If she and Nick hadn't already been the subject of gossip for everyone at school, then getting pulled aside by the principle for the fight on the bus, guaranteed they would be.

The principle a middle aged, but fit hare that had moved out from the city a few years ago, took no time in sorting through to the bottom of the what had happened. The first thing he'd done, knowing his students well, was find out who had inevitably recorded the incident on their phones and extracted copies of the videos from those students before marching the four involved, first to the nurses office to have Gideon's bleeding nose and the other assorted bruises and scarps dealt with and then to his office.

There really wasn't much to explain because at least three students had caught video of the whole thing including Gideon's comments. Judy blushed hard because it was apparent from the videos and the comments from the students taking them, that they had been recording her brushing Nick's tail and just happened to catch the whole incident that followed as Gideon stopped by their seat.

"Well, that seems to cover the fight from start to finish. Would any of you like add anything?" the principle asked stopping the last off the last video and placing his dark gray paws on the table in an expectant manner.

Judy didn't say anything, looking down at her lap in embarrassment. The video of her brushing Nick's tail, of the fight, of Nick wrapping himself around her as Gideon kicked out, made her and Nick look far from just friends. She didn't think she could speak even if she wanted to and none of the other three sitting next to her in chairs pulled up in front of the principles desk spoke up either.

"Right, thought not." Mr. Harris said.

"Travis, Judith. Thank you two for keeping your heads and trying to stop the fight." He looked back over the whole group his countenance growing grim as his focus narrowed on Nick and Gideon.

"You two are lucky they did. If claws or teeth had gotten involved in that rather than just fists we'd have to call in the sheriff to deal with this, and you two _were_ about to start tearing into each other, probably would have if they," he gestured at Travis and Judy, "hadn't slowed you down. They are the only reason that you two aren't talking to the police and about to be automatically suspended for the rest of the week."

He let that sink in for a few moments before continuing.

"Now, let's start with you Nicholas. You threw the first punch. Why?"

Judy looked over to Nick sitting next to her. His ears where all the way down and his lips where a thin angry line across his muzzle. He took one quick glance at Judy and she say his clenched paws shake slightly.

"I would like to hear you explain your actions Nicholas." Mr. Harris said watching him intently.

Nick's lips thinned further and then in a voice that shook with barely controlled anger said, "He wouldn't stop insulting my friend. I told him to stop and then he said… he said…" Nick stopped talking his fist shaking visibly now.

Mr. Harris raised an eyebrow at that and gave him a few moments to say more before nodding once to himself when Nick remained silent. He turned to face the other fox who wore a sullen brooding expression with his arms crossed.

"Gideon, your turn. Please explain yourself."

"What's there to explain?" Gideon said obstinately looking right back at the principle, "He's a dirty preychaser and I'm disgusted that I'm even related to him."

"That's it?" Mr. Harris asked and Gideon just sneered at Nick.

The Principle leaned back in his chair and rubbed one of his ears seeming to think, before finally nodding his head.

"Gideon, Mrs. Rivers has already explained to me about the altercation yesterday and that your parents have set up counseling sessions with her for you. You are clearly still angry about that situation and its source, but however you feel about your cousin and his relationship to Judith that does not give you're the right to say or do what you did, I'm particularly disappointed that you tried to kick her at the end of the fight when they were on the ground and it was clearly over. Those kinds of actions merit a suspension."

Gideon's angry scornful expression cracked showing signs of worry and Judy looked at him a bit shocked herself. She hadn't ever heard of a student getting suspended before from Bunnyburrow High before… if Gideon was the first, well besides what his parents might do as punishment, something like that would stick with him for years, maybe forever around a small town like this, and Gideon was already a bit of an outcast with only a few friends. She might not like him, okay she really didn't him, but the kind of small town gossip that would bring about could be brutal and ostracizing.

"However," Mr. Harris continued after a pause, "Mrs. Rivers asked that I show a little leniency, and as that would interfere with your those counseling appointments I'm willing to let you off with a lighter punishment. Instead of suspending you I am giving you detention for the rest of this week." He stopped and Gideon's worried face relaxed slightly.

Mr. Harris leaned forward his eyes narrowing and his tone sharpening, "Let me make one thing clear however, Gideon Grey. You have just used up all of the grace you are going to get. If you make any more trouble, there will be _no_ lenience what so ever. You can feel however you wish about your cousin or others, but if those feelings and thoughts become actions then we are going to have an issue. Also, _if_ you miss a _single_ one of your counseling sessions with Mrs. Rivers, I will reverse my decision and you will be suspended. Is that clear?"

Gideon gulped and nodded, not saying a word.

Mr. Harris turned his gaze toward Nick.

"Nicholas. I can understand the need to defend your friends and respond to insults but that was poorly handled. Your school record shows a history of disciplinary issues and fights. You need to learn how to respond to such situations without resorting to violence as your first option." He sat back, his tone softening minutely, "Between what happened yesterday, the instigation offered by Gideon, and that you would be feeling overprotective of your fiancé given that you and Judith have only just confirmed your engagement, I am willing to let you off with a warning… _this time_. Don't let it happen again."

Judy could feel her ears heating up and glanced at Nick who had a mixed look of extreme embarrassment and relief.

"I will however, be requiring that you also speak to Mrs. Rivers, you cannot let yourself fly off in an uncontrolled rage every time some mammal, particularly another male, says something or insults your mate."

Judy squeaked at that and Nick bulked waving his paws in front of him, "W-We're not!... We haven't!..."

Mr. Harris held up one paw to stop Nick, "Not my business, but you two have marked each other, even I can smell it. Though I don't think you two need to be embarrassed about your situation; it's not like you're the only couple in the senior class to be engaged… even if you've already put your claim on each other. Give it a little time and all the hubbabaloo will die down or shift to the next couple that appears."

Judy was trying to hide her burning ears behind her back and Nick's mouth moved a few more times without saying anything before he finally closed it.

"Now that we are done here you all need to head over to the auditorium. Homeroom period has already started and the teachers will have already taken roll call and assembled the seniors for their start of year welcome." Mr. Harris stood up and headed to the door. "Come on, I'll escort you all and explain your tardiness to your teachers."

* * *

As they entered the auditorium, Nick realized he should have remembered his own advice from when he'd told Judy things could always be worse. He'd thought that yesterday would have been the single most trying day of his life with everything that had happened. By the way the auditorium hushed and then broke out in whispers with many of the students glancing and pointing at them as they entered, today looked like it would be in strong contention for that positon.

One of the teachers that Nick didn't know, used the microphone to get the students attention back as Nick glumly followed Judy over to two seats, his ears and tail down and dragging. The only silver lining was that he was no longer anywhere near Gideon since the other two were in a different homeroom class. Mr. Weston nodded at them and gestured to the seats, motioning for them to sit.

"Ehem…" The old bunny with thick glasses and a tweed jacket at the podium said into the microphone, "If we can get back on topic, are there any other nominations for student president?"

Nick leaned over to Judy and whispered, "What's going on?" hoping she'd know what this senior class meeting was about.

Judy took a quick look around before leaning back toward him.

"Each class year has a meeting at the beginning of the school year, freshmen would have been yesterday. Normal stuff, teachers give a few greetings and expectations, and they usually make some announcements as well. Senior class is also usually asked for nominations for the student council."

Nick noticed Mr. Weston giving them a stern look and he nudged Judy, who also took notice and quieted.

"Nobody else?" the old professor looking bunny said from the podium, but nobody in the auditorium raised a hand or spoke up.

The bunny adjusted his glasses and mumbled for a second before speaking coherently into the mic, "Well… in that case as there was only one nomination, everybody please give a round of applause to your new student council president." There was a loud if not overly enthusiastic applause from the crowd of students, though a few whistled and shouted out.

Then old bunny tapped the microphone a few times quieting them, "Jessica Hopps, Congratulations. Would you like to give a few words to the senior class before we give out the final announcements and dismiss you all?"

There was a louder cheer at the news that they might get dismissed early, though Judy slumped in her seat and groaned. Nick gave her a worried look, as all of his friends seemingly endless energy appeared to have suddenly drained out of her leaving her looking lifeless. Even her ears were laying limply across the back of the fold out chair.

Judy turned to face him morosely and mouthed the word 'Jessica' before giving him a look like the world was about to end. Nick started to shrug not seeing why that mattered before he remembered that it was apparently Judy's sister Jessica that had locked them in the bathroom this morning.

Still he didn't see why her being elected as the student president was such a bad thing. They had bigger issues to deal with, like the insane gossip storm about them that was no doubt traveling around between the other students like fire in a dry woods.

"Hey Everybody!" came an excited voice Nick recognized from this morning. And he felt a shiver run down his spine. He'd been so flustered this morning running out of Judy's room he'd missed what should have been obviously apparent about the bunny he'd met in the hallway. Nick was well practiced at the art of manipulation and hustling; over the years in his encounters with other students and particularly the members for his old junior ranger scouts group, he'd learned to be exactly what they'd expected him to be, sly and manipulative. He should have recognized the sound of someone else that was working an angle.

"As your student council president, I'll be making it my primary goal this year to abolish homework!" Judy's sister said from the podium and the students erupted in ruckus cheers and shouts as the bunny, who looked like a more delicate version of Judy, said with a grin.

Nick could see the eye roll of the old tweed jacketed professor even from all the way near the back of the auditorium though that might have been thanks to his thick glasses that made his eyes look huge.

"Jessica, _please_ be a little more serious," The teacher said with a bit of exasperation as the crowd continued to roar its approval.

Jessica just gave him a smile before turning back to the mic with a shrug, "Well I might not succeed but I can try. Well… I'm not going to keep us here longer than we need to be if we can get out of this auditorium early, but before I go I'd like to offer you all my suggestion for the senior year production vote." The noise from the students had finally started to die down and seemed to rapidly lose interest at the change in subject.

Nick glanced at Mr. Weston to make sure he wasn't watching before asking Judy, "Senior production?"

She two glanced back at the teacher before whispering back, "School tradition. Senor class always puts on a play that most the town comes to see. We get to vote on which play we do."

"This year," Jessica continued enthusiastically despite the lessoning intrest, "I put forth that the senior production should be 'Beauty and the Beast'," this actually got some groans from the students, particularly the male students, "Now I realize that this might not seem like the most interesting idea, so to shake things up this year and make it a little more _and_ seeing as I'm now the student council president and can do this, not only will the play be up to popular vote but so will the spots." The crowd had quieted but this brought about a new wave of whispers, as Jessica continued excitedly, "Want payback on your friend for something? Put their name forward as one of the comedic relief roles!" That got some laughs and the whisper got louder.

There where even a few calls across the auditorium like, "Hear that Jannis! You're in for it!" and "Gideon and Travis for the sisters!"

Nick laughed hearing that one and grinned at Judy who brought her paws up to her face and snickered.

"Maybe your sister isn't that bad." Nick whispered to Judy snicker himself as well.

Nick might have to thank her sister later if she managed to get Gideon into a role like that. Just the idea raised his spirits. He grinned and whispered to Judy again, "Think of Gid in a dress!" and she broke out into muffled giggles.

Jessica continued, the crowd now seeming more excited about the prospect of the senior play as they tossed around names for different spots or suggested other plays that might offer even better comedic positons to stick other students in, "Think it would be fun to see one of your classmates that swore they'd never be in the play staring in a key role? Nominate them!" The senior class now seemed quite enthusiastic about the prospect and cheered, "Want to see the schools newest awkward couple take the leading roles? Vote for them!"

Nick's snickering ceased so fast he almost choked. The entire auditorium was cheering and laughing many of them now turning to looking directly at him and Judy.

He'd been wrong about Judy's sister… well actually, what he said was right; she wasn't _that_ bad, she was far worse.

Nick shrunk down as low as he could get in his seat while Judy tried to hide behind her ears and disappear as she muttered, "No, no, no, no, no…"

There was a call from the cheering crowd of "Nick and Judy!" followed by another of "Wilde and Hopps!" which was picked up by others in a growing chant.

"Wilde and Hopps!, Wilde and Hopps! Wilde and Hopps!" the chant picked up momentum and Nick stared seriously considering running for it or hiding under his chair. Maybe he could hide under it and try digging his way out of this nightmare, that or dig his own grave since he was about to die from mortification as the chant picked up speed shortening to, "WildeHopps! WildeHopps! WildeHopps!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Humm... what is this rumor going around about "One Hundred 'Boop's"? And why does the navy say that they'll try to provide faster chapter resupplies of this story in trade for 'boops'?


	16. Chapter 15 – Gossip and Breaking Storms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: So apparently there's this thing called 'insubordination' that all the navy officers get really touchy about. All I did was tell the captain that the last cup of coffee from the in the mess was mine and I was taking it, orders to the contrary be damned. Now, well... now I'm not sure whether I should be more afraid of Disney or the Navy. I mean, seriously, I thought I got cranky without my coffee, but that was a whole knew level cranky, like cranky to the nth degree. Humm... maybe Disney isn't mad at me for stealing there stuff, but just ran out of coffee too?
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: I'm using this awesome new product by sold by ACME called typos-be-gone. Glad I won't have to deal with those anymore!

 

Sharla kept looking over to the side, trying to get a good look at her friend and the new fox as the senior class's ruckus chanting was slowly brought under control by the teachers. From what she could see, Judy seemed to be mumbling something as she tugged on her ears, hiding behind them while both she and the fox sunk down as low as possible in their seats. But that's not what really caught her interest. Their embarrassment and blushed didn't surprise her, what with them becoming the sole focus of the classes chant, but rather than trying to distance themselves from each other under the weight of the chant, they had scooted closer to each other as if the presence of the other offered some form of protect.

Sharla had to hold back a delighted squeal as old professor Nye sent Jessica back to her seat and started giving out the finally announcements. The rumors from yesterday during school where nothing compared to what had been flying around last night. The current gossip and stories going around were so wild that she wasn't sure she believed even half of them. Sharla _had_ seen how Judy had acted yesterday and her friend was undoubtedly heavily smitten with the fox but the rumors were saying that it was far _far_ more than just a crush.

 _Then again there was that picture her sister sent me,_ Sharla thought blushing a bit. At first glance she'd thought it was some sort of fake since smitten or not, this was _Judy_ and the chance of her sleeping with someone she'd just met…

But then again, there were those rumors and that _picture_. She blushed more thinking of some of the more farfetched ones and how that picture suggested that some of them might actually be true. Judy had looked awfully happy cuddled up to the nuzzling fox that was wrapped around her. They'd looked like they were two puzzle pieces made to fit together. The picture, to put it in one word, was **_cute_**. Sharla's cheeks heated more; having grown up in Bunnyburrow she _knew_ what that word meant to bunnies and it fit the picture perfectly.

Sharla was glad of her darker wool because it would be almost impossible for anyone to see _her_ blush. She'd checked with her brother just to be sure the picture wasn't a fake, but Garth agreed with her that he didn't think it was and he'd checked with Bobby who agreed with both of them that it had to be real.

 _Though, they_ _ **had**_ _been wearing clothes_ , she thought, cheeks still burning, _or at least_ _ **some**_ _clothes. If they had actually done what everyone seems to think they had, they wouldn't have been sleeping with any clothes…right?_

Clearly though, from the way Judy was leaning into her boyfriend, _or is it fiancé?,_ right now, things had moved along faster than Sharla would have imagined possible for Judy. Sharla squirmed in her seat catching another glance of the two who were huddling down in their seats looking forlorn and dejected. But despite their apparent humiliation, both had shifted in their seats so that they were sitting right at the edge, almost touching each other.

Sharla felt like her eyes might pop as she considered what that might mean, she really _really_ needed to get Judy alone for a few minutes, and get her to tell her exactly what _had_ happened. She had so many questions and besides the rumor mill's suggestion that they were more than 'just friends', she didn't know what to believe.

After they'd been caught making out in the janitors closet yesterday the rumor of Judy's prearranged marriage had swept through the school like a lit gunpowder trail sparking immediate debate over whether she had really fallen for the fox or whether she was using it as a way to get out of the rumored marriage arrangement. Sharla had originally dismissed the marriage contract rumors as an exaggeration someone had fabricated to make Judy's uncharacteristic and sudden hard fall for the fox seem even more exciting. But shortly after school yesterday, the towns highschool gossip net had nearly exploded with apparent confirmations from Hopps family members. Muzzlebook had detonated like a nuclear explosion and then spewed rumors of every type like radioactive fallout. And not to be outdone the old-school Bunnyburrow rumor mill cranked up to full output, with old Mrs. Thompson leading the charge.

The most prevalent rumor was that Judy hadn't _just_ had an arranged marriage but that it was to 'The New Fox' as the new transfer student had instantly become known. While some were claiming it was a big hoax, there seemed to be a fair number of Hopps's saying it was true. But the rumors had only gotten wilder and wilder from there.

Some were claiming that there had been a secret romance going on between the two for years and that some incident had forced the families to sign a marriage contact to avoid some sort of embarrassment, others claimed that the Hopps's had sold Judy to a rich fox family from the city for desperately need money to save their farm. Others were saying that Mr. Hopps had sworn a blood oath to kill the fox if he so much as looked at his daughter while Mrs. Hopps had adopted him as one of her own. Rumors that the two had already mated and marked each other and even attempted to elope were rife in so many varied forms that Sharla had lost count.

Then there were the rumors like what Mrs. Thompson was going on about, claiming the new fox had challenged Gideon to an old fashioned duel over a slight to Judy which the police had had to break up. And while this was dismissed by most as preposterous, _something_ had happened last night at the Grey's home involving the police and the Hopps's since other neighbors had seen the cars from both parties parked in-front of their house last night. Most just assumed that old Mrs. Thompson was confusing the facts of what happened with one of her romance sitcom dramas… again.

She was swearing up and down that back a decade or so ago when they were, as she put it 'wee little kits', she remembered seeing Judy and that fox running off together during the annual Bunnyburrow Christmas Party only to kiss and promise themselves to each other. Said that their parents had tried doing everything to break them up including keeping them separated ever since 'the Christmas incident'. According to her, the fox boy had been disowned by his family for refusing to renege on his childhood promise to marry Judy and _that_ was why he had to be taken in by his relatives all the way out here. From there her version of events only got more unbelievable, including the claimed 'duel' (though after this morning's fight it seemed a little less preposterous) and a clash between the Greys, the Hopps's, and the police, that as she told it, ended with Mr. Hopps siding with _Gideon_ against Mrs. Hopps and Gideon's parents, apparently declaring he'd have Judy marry Gideon before he'd let her marry the new fox, while Sheriff Prongs and his (according to old Mrs. Thompson at least) 'dashingly handsome deputy, yes the one with the swashbuckling attitude and _cute_ rear and tail', tried to stop the two sides from attacking each other.

The way the old biddy told it, the only reason it hadn't turned into a three way brawl was because Judy had come in and after telling her father off and swearing to elope with the new fox, had proceeded to do just that, forcing all involved to go chasing after the two before they could jumped on the last train headed for Zootopia together.

Only slightly more reputable sources were claiming that Mr. Hopps had stormed over to the Greys, pitchfork in paw, intent on forcibly bringing the new fox back to their farm to hold a shotgun wedding after finding out that the fox had deflowered his daughter and likely gotten Judy pregnant. (There was a not inconsiderable side debate raging in the town about whether it should be called a 'shotgun' wedding or a 'pitchfork' wedding.)

Most where rather dubious about this too, but there were also quite a few prevalent rumors going around that Mrs. Hopps had berating the Judy and the new fox for jumping into bed together without taking any 'precautions', and _everyone_ in Bunnyburrow new the chances of a bunnyrabbit getting pregnant if protection wasn't used. The Welcome to Bunnyburrow sign at the train station might be a town joke, but it was also a rather potent reminder of why sexual education in Bunnyburrow was taken quite seriously.

And while it was a common knowledge that most species could interbreed successfully, though such interspecies relationships _were_ fairly rare and usually only between close species, to say the question of whether a fox and a bunny _could_ interbreed was being bandied about the town was like saying Bunnyburrow had a few 'small' farms. Sharla would bet everything she had that that was going to be the very first question asked in the mandatory start of year Sex-Ed course. It might have been a bit stereotypical but most, particularly the _bunnies_ , agreed that they certainly wouldn't put it out of the realm of possibilities for a bunnyrabbit to be able to successfully 'multiply' even with a species like their traditional enemy. The rumor of a hurriedly schedule doctor's appointment for Judy only exasperated those rumors. Some argued that it was proof they _had_ already… Sharla frowned thinking back to the phrase some predators on TV used… 'tied the knot' wasn't it?

Well, some thought that the doctor's appointment was proof they'd 'tied the knot' since as they saw it, any reasonable bunny would want to get professional advice on what might be a potentially tricky pregnancy since they _were_ such different species. When some rejected this argument asking why they would make an appointment when it was to early to even confirm if Judy was pregnant, the defenders of the theory simply pointed to the Bunnyburrow Welcome sign.

And those where just the rumors from _before_ this morning's fight on the bus, which Sharla, like every other student, had seen at least one video of.

There was a clatter as the assembled students were dismissed and she saw Judy leap off of her chair, grab the foxes paw and haul him stumbling behind her toward the doors. Sharla moved quickly but still almost lost sight of them as they turned a corner in the hallway outside.

She didn't want to have to wait until lunch to get the real story from Judy, and they had some time before the end of the period when they'd have to get to their next classes. Sharla hurried after them, barely keeping up with Judy's fast pace as she followed the pair outside. She saw them head around the corner of the building and ran over about to call out for Judy to slow down when she turned the corner and froze.

* * *

Judy didn't really pay much attention to the end of the welcome ceremony, which thankfully, was mercifully short after the teachers managed to get the students under control. Jessica was ushered off stage and there were some general announcements before the seniors were dismissed. Judy had latched onto the first distraction her mind had been able to offer her… well second actually, since she was _not_ going to bury her face in Nick's musky fur and hide from the world, no matter how comforting and enticing that option was.

So instead, she latched onto how she was going to get back at Jessica, because there _was_ going to be some retribution by Serendipity. She didn't care if she had to sell her soul to Murphy the trickster, she _was_ going to get Jessica for this… that or die from mortification and spend the rest of her life hiding her face in that wonderful fur of Nick's…

Judy pulled her wandering thoughts back together as the senior class was dismissed. She restoked the burning desire for her sibling vengeance to keep the embarrassment and Nick's scent from breaking her mind, all the while storming (fleeing) out of the auditorium, dragging Nick behind her.

She was so mad (and embarrassed, but she was blocking that _hard_ ) that she didn't even know where she was going until she found that she was back at her favorite spot on the school grounds.

The large old oak tree had always been her refuge at school; it reminding her of her favorite spot back on the farm. Whenever the stress of highschool and its social currents, which she knew she wasn't very good at navigating, seemed like they were too much, she'd always been able to come here and recollect herself.

The old tree by the school was like a twin sentinel to the other on the hill miles away at their farm that was her kithood hideaway she'd run to whenever she was upset. When the world had been too much, when it seemed like there wasn't anyone else that was there to support her, when she needed to be by herself to cry, she'd run off and hide in the old tire swing under that ancient tree. No matter what was bothering her, that spot had always given her comfort, made her feel safe and protected. She could sit in that old tire swing and imagine the lone giant of the forest was there watching out for her, telling her it would be alright, that she wasn't alone.

Judy looked at the tree, its leaves gently swaying in the wind, and took a breath, trying to calm her roiling emotions before turning to Nick. They needed to get a handle on things and on _Jessica_ before her sister did anything else to wreck their lives. She hardened her resolve, bottled up the rest of her feelings and focusing solely on the current task at hand that she'd set for herself.

She looked at Nick and opened her mouth intending to get right to the point but froze looking at him. She'd grabbed Nick so they could escape from that mortifying experience but she'd been to absorbed in her own feelings of embarrassed hurt to pay much attention to anything else. The fox before her, under the waving branches of the tree, looked like all the happiness had been squeezed out of him. His tail was dragging, his ears were limp and his shoulders sagged; he looked like she felt but _worse_ , but the part that really got to her was how he looked like he should have known he'd it was coming, liked he'd expected to be ridiculed; a look like he'd known his hopes would once again be crushed and couldn't find it in himself to fight against it anymore.

Seeing him like that caused a sharp searing pain to cut through her and she forgot what she was about to say. She reached out a paw wanting, _needing_ to do something to help when it happened and happened all in an instant. She could see Nick standing there, but there was also something like a hazy memory of an old half-forgotten dream that flashed through her mind nearly superimposing itself on the view in front of her as the old tree swayed gently in the wind..

Nick was standing there under the tree looking like he wanted to just hide from the world, but there was also a kit like the one from her dreams, a kit that was running and playing with her under the tree. The glimpse was there and gone so fast Judy didn't have the chance to even think about it before another hit her.

The kit was chasing her as she squealed happily running from him as he made kissy noises, a kit with russet fur exactly like Nick's.

Then another, the same kit, emerald green eyes sad and down cast as he mumbled, 'because I'm a fox…' and Judy's already hurt heart felt like it was suddenly tearing in two. And the image was gone, instead she was seeing, remembering, feeling herself hugging the other kit like she never intended to let go, _wishing_ she'd never have to let go, while a familiar phantom memory of a musky scent washed over her and around her, mixing between the dream memory and that faint persistence scent that had refused to leave her mind alone since she'd woken up yesterday under this very tree.

Another of arms around her, another of laughing, another of an arm that darkened from russet to a deep almost black red color at the paws reaching up to use a claw to cut a heart and letters into a familiar tire swing as they rocked below an oak tree on a warm sunny day. The images came and went in an instant, each carrying a slew of emotions that rocked through her, one after another, too fast for her to handle.

And then they were gone, just gone, leaving her hollow and empty like she'd been given a glimpse of something precious only to have it ripped away. She felt something wet track down her face and heard a familiar worried voice calling her name but couldn't respond. All her bottled up emotions from the welcome ceremony had broken free and clashed violently with that abyss left in the wake of the feelings that had come and gone with the flashes of dreams or memories or what, she wasn't sure.

But it hurt, having that sudden onslaught, the happiness, the laughter, the contentment, comfort and companionship, torn away. It _hurt_. She felt more wet streaks travel down her face and another worried call but she couldn't think, her mind simply wouldn't work right. It just careened uselessly as she realized that she was crying but didn't know why. And then there were two warm arms wrapping themselves around her, pulling her into an embrace and she wasn't sure if it was real or just the phantom feeling from another one of those flashes. But then she felt her head pulled close against familiar sweet smelling soft fur, felt the heat and heartbeat of someone else, heard the low comforting crooning of a voice she knew she could trust as it told her it would be alright, that everything would be alright. And as the protective arms held and gently rocked her, she felt the void left by the feelings that had knifed through her begin to fill with an echo of what she had felt before, only stronger because this time they weren't just memories or figments of her imagination, this time they were real, coming from the mammal holding her.

Judy broke down clutching at those feelings, desperately holding onto the other warm body that was their source and buried her short muzzle into the scruffy soft russet fur and cried letting all the pent up roiling emotions she tried bottling up spill out like a breaking dam. The arms around her tightened, and she felt something else warm and fluffy wrap around her while the crooning reassurances became a bit choked. The voice's muzzle pressed against her and she felt a tear that wasn't hers hit her cheek and then join her own.

* * *

Storming out of the auditorium, Gideon left Travis behind to find his own way through the jostling crowd of seniors. He didn't want to be anywhere near him right now. Travis, might be his only real friend in this pit of a backwater town but he'd changed over the last couple of years and it left Gideon feeling like he didn't even know the weasel anymore. He hung out with Gideon less and less and when he _could_ spare the time from his studying or part time job or whatever else he was doing he was more interested talking about possible college choices than ragging on the other students that made up this prey stuffed carrot picking town.

Hell, Travis had probable spent more time hanging out with the other stupid mammals in his advanced math and science courses than he did with _him_ anymore.

Gideon left the main building, needing to just get away from his traitor of a friend, all the while still steaming over the trouble his stupid cousin and Lonny Judy had gotten him into. He rubbed his still sore nose which twinged in pain, and kicked a piece of trash lying on the ground, feeling only a tiny fraction of satisfaction as the bent soda can bounce off the school building's wall.

He'd been delighted when he found out that his cousin was moving out here for the school year. Gideon had looked forward to it all summer thinking about how much more fun it would be with his cousin around. There might not be a lot to do in this prey-neck hillbilly town but he'd been looking forward to showing Nick around and hearing about the big city from him. Gideon kicked the can again angrily.

Then his cousin had turned up and was more interested in spending time with the other prey students and chasing after that loony bunny he was stupidly infatuated with. Nick was supposed to be _his_ friend, and instead he'd ignored and derided him like everyone else around in this _Stupid_ town. Gideon kicked the can again _hard_ , but not even watching it crumple made him feel any better.

He was lining up another kick, aiming to bounce it off the corner of the building, when he collided with a sheep that came quickly backing around the corner. He stumbled back off balance having had his foot out to kick and fell on his rear as the dumb sheep tumbled over him with a squawk and then started profusely apologizing.

"Sorry! Sorry! I wasn't paying attention to where I was going! Sorry!"

"G-get off!" Gideon mumbled through a mouthful of black wool, before the sheep finally scrambled back to her feet and turned holding out a hoof to help him up

"Sorry! Here let me-" she stopped mid-sentence recognizing him, her eyes going a little wide. Gideon pointedly ignored the sheep's offered hoof and got to his feet by himself. He muttered a few comments about brainless blind sheep as he brushed himself off and then with a glancing scowl at the ewe, one of the ones Loony Judy hung out with roughly brushed by her.

He didn't even feel up to picking on her right now and just wanted to be by himself. What he didn't expect though was for the sheep to give a half-terrified squeak and run around in front of him holding out her arms to block his path.

"You can't go there right now!" she said in a bit of a panic before looking at him and a hint of fear appeared on her face.

"And _you're_ going to stop me?" Gideon snarled disdainfully, before shoving by her.

But for once the little black sheep didn't cower back from him even if she did shake a bit as she grabbed his arm hauling on it in an attempt to stop him.

"Gid! Seriously you _can't_ ," she hiss lowly, a mix of pleading, sternness, and fear in her voice.

"Watch me." Gideon snapped, and saw her eyes go a little wider at the sight of his teeth, though she stubbornly clung to his arm, telling him that he couldn't go that way.

 _Stupid brainless idiotic prey, scared of absolutely everything,_ Gideon thought, seeing the same response that he nearly always got from prey mammals no matter how long he'd known them. He was starting to get fed up with the little sheep and was just about to shake her off when he saw what was around the corner that the sheep had been trying to block. He came to a dead stop, not sure if he was actually seeing what he thought he was. It wasn't _what_ , it was who… or whom? Whos? He tried to remember the what was the proper plural but he always hated grammar anyway and what did it matter if he had a country accent and could speak all smarts like-

Gideon blinked, the sheer unexpectedness of what he was seeing having sent his mind reeling, and he pulled his mind back from its tangent;

The black ewe was back in front of him, both hooves on his chest trying to push him back, not that she was having much of an effect, he was fairly big and heavily built for a fox after all and she was small for a sheep.

"Gideon, _please_ , leave them be!" she hissed quietly still pushing ineffectually, "Haven't you hurt them enough already?! Just turn around and leave them alone!" she nearly pleaded.

Gideon blinked again, but he wasn't seeing any sort of hallucination. His cousin was crouched down under the old oak tree holding loony Judy as she sobbed into his neck and clutched at him. He'd wrapped _his tail_ around her, holding her as he crooned smoothing soft that Gideon couldn't pick up and nuzzled against her cheek.

 _Looney Judy never cries,_ Gideon thought trying to process the scene, _Hell that crazy stupid bunny doesn't know how to cry_. He might hate the overenthusiastic stuckup do-gooder, but just about the only thing he could respect about her was that she didn't back down from a fight or cry _, not that that stops her nose from twitching in fear around me_ , he thought trying to muster up some more derision, but failing. He'd felt like he should probably throw out an insult or two or maybe just laugh at them, just for sheer spite, but he remembered how close he'd come to already getting suspended this morning and for once decided to hold his tongue; it was too much effort right now anyway and he just wanted to be alone, not surrounded by condescending, backstabbing and stupid mammals, and particularly not those two, he thought with a pang of betrayal and jealously.

Judy with her police ambition, was the town laughingstock and yet, even that hadn't stopped her from always having more friends than him. And now _his_ cousin, who should have been hanging out with _him_ , being _his_ friend, had lost his mind and thrown that away for _that_ _stupid dumb bunny_.

He frowned, nearly snarling and reconsidering his decision not to mock them, but the sheep,Sharla or something similar, was still shoving him back, her hooves on his chest.

"Gideon, I swear that if you say or do anything to them right now that I'll… I'll… I don't know what I'll do! But I'll do _something_! And you won't like it!" she said trying to sound determined, though her voice quivered as she tried threatening him and even jabbed him in his chest. Giving up on pushing him back since it wasn't working well, she quickly circled around and in a move that surprised Gideon, grabbed his tail and yanked on it like she'd using a rope to drag him.

Gideon stifled a startled yip, his face flushing as he took a few quick steps back before he managed to shoved her away from him, pushing hard enough on her fluffy poof on top of her head that she tumbled backwards letting go of his tail which he quickly swung safely out of her reach before turning to face her with a glower.

She got back up though determinedly, even if she did shake in fear.

"Gideon, for once, please, please, _please_ , just leave Judy alone. I'll do whatever you want just leave her and her boyfriend alone right now."

Gideon had been about to snarl at her but stopped, a thought sparking and instead he crossed his arms, looking back at her with deridingly.

"Really? You'll do whatever I want if I leave them alone right now?" He said and the sheep gulped but nodded her head.

If he remembered right, Sharla was in the advanced math course with Travis, she was one of those dorky nerds, with pie in the sky dreams. She'd fail, he was sure, but that didn't mean he couldn't use her in the mean time to make his life slightly more bearable.

"Fine." Gideon said with a leer, jabbing her back this time forcing her to take a stumbling step back, "Then you can do all my math homework this year."

The sheep gulped again and bulked.

"I can't do that! T-that's against school rules!" she all but stammered.

"Then we don't have a deal," Gideon said turning as if to march over toward where Nick and loony Judy where but Sharla grabbed his arm stopping him.

"Alright! Alright! I'll _help_ you with your math homework, I can do that at least. Just leave them alone!" she quickly said yanking on his arm again, still shaking as she did so.

Gideon rolled his eyes, watching the affair ewe, "Sure, you can 'help' _do_ my homework then." He said and with a sharp motion of his arm, broke her hoofs grip walking past her dismissively. "We have a deal puff head, don't forget it."

He didn't bother looking back as he left the idiots behind him. He sighted the crushed can and gave it another kick. Watching it tumble. At least one good thing had happened today, since he wouldn't have to worry about those stupid overly complex math problems Mrs. Woolstein liked to give out.

He kicked the can again. If Nick wanted to end up living the rest of his life married to a freaking crazy _bunny_ picking _carrots_ , then he was better off without Nick being his friend.

Gideon hit the can, watching it tumble and tried wondering if Travis might be free this afternoon once he was out of detention and what they might do for fun but the image of his cousin holding the crazy bunny, comforting her kept intruding on his thoughts. Nick was an idiot, he and the bunny both were both idiots. Foxes and bunnies would never get along because the stupid little prey mammals, no matter how crazy, would _always_ have an underlying fear of them. And they _always_ showed that fear and it would eat away at whatever pretense of a friendship those two thought they might have.

Gideon sent the can flying again. He would never be stupid enough to ever become friends with some stupid fear riddle prey mammal let alone fall in love with one. Gideon didn't care what he would have to did, but one way or another after highschool was over this year he was going to get out of this no-where hick town.

 _At least_ , he thought feeling a small smile form for the first time today as he punted the can again, _now I don't have to worry about any stupid math homework this year._


	17. Chapter 16 – A Rock to Hold Onto

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Soooo... I got put on punishment detail cleaning the bridge and there was this big red button under a cover labeled 'Feels'... and I might have just pushed it... a few times. I mean what could the harm in that be, right? Well, now Disney's lawyers are calling and seem quite upset, something about stealing there characters and using them to make people cry. And the Captain is also headed my way with an angry look. So... I guess I should just keep hitting this button as fast as I can before he gets here, right?
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: This ACME Typo-Be-Gone product is awesome! I'm so getting the entire ACME product catalog from Wile-E Coyote, even the delivery service was ridiculously fast. (and who knew birds could run on water?)

 

Nick thought he might be in hell as the senior classes chant seemed to go on and on and on... Or maybe just a nightmare, he really _really_ hoped this might be a nightmare. He'd sunk as low as he could get in his chair, but he couldn't hide from the chant.

"WildeHopps, WildeHopps, WildeHopps!"

Nick pinched himself, but he didn't wake up. Then he checked to see if maybe this was one of those nightmares where you found yourself in only your underwear in front of your class getting laughed at. Maybe he was just having some sort of awful cliché dream. But nope, he was dressed. He honestly wasn't sure if that made him feel better or worse… sort of both? It wasn't like he could feel any _worse_ after all. There had to be a bottom, a limit to how bad nightmares, real or imagined, could get. This _had_ to be as bad as it could possibly get, because he didn't think he could survive more. He wasn't even sure he could survive this.

"WildeHopps, WildeHopps, WildeHopps!"

He tried to scrunch down further in his seat. He normally would have ignored the attention or played it off, done anything but let others see that it got to him. He'd thought that he'd learned to make a wall between him and the world that nobody could get through and that nothing could break. And then he'd come out here and that wall had been pulverized over and over again in the last… had it only been a day? It had felt like a year… years… a small eternity. But it had left him without anything left to hide behind as chant continued and he remembered another chant like this one, one less loud but far more ugly.

He remembered the feel of cold steel around his muzzle, other kits in the same uniform his mother had worked to get him, kits that were he'd thought would be his new friends, as they stood around mocking him, chanting at him, ridiculing him.

Nick sat slumped not paying attention to anything as the auditorium quieted and he tried to figure out how his life had suddenly blow up, hell, he didn't even know where to start trying to pick up the pieces this time. He felt numb; completely, utterly numb. He should have known that something would happen and life would end up kicking him again. What was even the purpose in trying? Every time he'd ever tried picking himself up he just ended up getting kicked to the ground again.

The last time he tried, he'd gotten beaten black and blue and forced to leave his school. And now a few months later he was hundreds of miles away from his home, alone and _still_ being taunted. At least last time it had on been physical injuries. Those could heal. That childhood chant of 'sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me,' was a load of crap. Words could hurt in ways no physical wound could, words could cut _deep_ even if you were strong. And he had no defense against them now.

And even with that chant gone, he could still hear it, hear it mixed with the last time he hadn't had any defense against those words, hear those other kits as a steel bit into his muzzle. Hear the words they'd said that had hurt worse than that cold metal.

Nick was so deep in his own thoughts that he barely noticed when they'd been dismissed or that he was being led, almost dragged out of the auditorium, out of the building. He found himself back under the large tree from yesterday, and his numb mind absently noted that it was probably the largest real tree he'd ever seen. The gray bunny, that familiar fiery determined bunny was in front of him, furiously stomping forward before turning around to face him, looking both angry and determined, like she was ready to go back into that auditorium and face down every mammal in there just by herself.

From the moment he'd caught the first faint whiff of her oddly familiar scent yesterday things had started falling apart. His already messed up life had veered sharply and then seemed to bounce around like the marble in a pinball machine as life seemed to mash every button sending him careening to and fro. And she'd been there right through it all, but unlike him she didn't seem ready to give up.

Absentmindedly, he wondered how she did it, how she withstood it all. He just wanted to go over to that tree and curl up and forget the world; go back to those hazy happy dreams he'd had sleeping under those waving branches. Those short moments of scattered dreams underneath that tree were the only happy memories he had of his miserable time at this school.

He focused on the determined bunny in front of him, still marveling at her strength, wishing that maybe he could be a bit more like her. He hoped that she'd succeed where he had failed, hoped that she found a way to her goals no matter how far-fetched they were, hoped she proved the world wrong.

And then her determination, her strength seemed to crack like struck pane of glass and Nick found he'd been wrong once again.

Watching that happen was worse than the auditorium, worse than the humiliation, worse than his memories. Watching her strength crumble was the single most painful thing he'd ever experienced.

He'd seen her embarrassed and angry and even a bit shy, but through it all she had never looked… vulnerable. Never looked like she did now, staring past him while her strength seemed to crumble as a tear rolled down her cheek. Numb or not, seeing that hurt.

"Carrots?" Nick asked hesitantly, "Carrots, a-are you alright?" It was a stupid thing to ask, he knew it, but he didn't know what else to say.

She didn't respond, only stared with that exposed, fragile expression, like the next slight gust might break her completely. Another tear followed the first, then another one tracked down her other cheek.

"Carrots? Judy? _Please_ , what's the matter?" he asked, a growing desperate worry overshadowing the numbness. He felt like someone was stabbing him in the heart and twisting the knife, and no amount of numbness could stop that painful agonizing _hurt_.

Nick couldn't take it, it was too much. He _couldn't_ watch this, _let_ this happen.

He moved more out of instinct that any conscious thought and wrapped his arms around her pulling her to him. All he could think about was the need to help her; to stop the world from crushing her too. Not this strong fierce little bunny, not her. He didn't care what it cost him, the world had already beaten him down, but he wouldn't let it have her.

"Come on Judy, don't let them get to you. It'll be alright, everything will be alright, you'll see." He doubted that was true even as he said it, but for once he didn't care. He needed it to be true for her.

She clutched onto him, her paws fisting and wrinkling his shirt in her grasp as she buried her face in his neck and let loose with a stream of tears. Nick wrapped his tail around her, rocking her as he continued to mummer whatever he could think of to reassure her as she cried. He closed his own eyes and rested his head against hers, trying to be strong for her, trying not to break down too, trying to give her whatever strength and support she need to make it through this. He kept telling her it would be alright, over and over again, _needed_ her to believe him, to believe that it would be alright, because if she broke… then he would have nothing left.

* * *

It was a minute or two before Judy felt her tears finally start to run dry, though even then, she couldn't bring herself to let go of the other mammal, of Nick, she realized not that she could muster the energy to care about it. She needed him right then, needed the way he was holding her, the way his arms and tail wrapped protectively around her and his musky scent seemed to envelope her. His presence was warm and soft and his words and actions were kind and caring, filling the hole in her heart she hadn't even known was there. Right then, right there she _needed_ him like she had never needed anything else in her life.

They were sitting back underneath the oak tree like they had been last night accept this time, instead of being cuddled up next to him, she was sitting curled up in his lap wrapped up by his arms and tail. She couldn't remember how they gotten here, though thinking about it she realized that Nick must have carried her.

"Judy?" he asked softly, having noticed some change, "Judy, are you doing better now?"

Instead of responding, she pressed herself against him, burying her short muzzle into his neck and borrowing her nose under his chin and into his ruff as if drawn to him by some force she couldn't resist. She breathed in and her lungs filled with his scent and a faint trace of her mark. And even more to her surprise than her sudden movement, the smell didn't fill her with a feeling of embarrassment as it had before but calmed her, filling her with a feeling of contentment and reassurance.

It made no sense to her rational mind but it simply felt right to be there curled into him, having this larger, stronger _fox_ hold her, wrapping her up with his arms and tail while he nuzzled her ears. It knew it was _wrong_ but it just felt so _right_. And for the moment at least, she didn't really care how illogical the whole situation was. She took in another long breath, letting the smell permeate her, settling her thoughts and emotions.

Nick nuzzled her again, his arms still tight around her and she felt the lightest kiss at the base of her ear as he murmured, "See, everything is alright, they all got their laughs but we're still here. Don't let them get to you," And then so faintly she almost thought she'd imagined it she heard him whisper again as his tail tightened around her, "I _need_ you, Judy. Don't let them break to you too."

Something wet pattered on her head, and her breath hitched coming in raggedly for a few moments as she became aware of just how he was holding her. It wasn't like her mother or father, who would offer unending support or comfort for as long as they needed it; no Nick was holding her with a fierce urgency like he was afraid she'd disappear. And right on the heels of that that realization, it suddenly dawned on her how this might look to anyone else, them wrapped up crying and comforted each other… and why was Nick even doing that? He could have sat next to her patted her on the back or something as she worked through her emotional crises. Why hadn't he done that? Why was he holding on to her so tightly? And why had he said he _needed_ her? he'd sounded… desperate, frantic, like he was about to lose the most important thing in the world to him.

Judy face suddenly, inexplicitly felt like it had caught on fire. She felt just like she had after kissing him this morning. That had just felt right too… until reality returned.

She flushed more and started to squirm out of his lap, not daring to look directly at him. She thought she might just lose her mind if she looked into those green eyes right now. In some ways she feared what she might find behind them because the idea of what her fanciful mind was suggesting was thrilling in a way that sent her heart racing and utterly terrified her, and if she was wrong… and she probably was she sternly chided herself, seeing that right at this moment would just be too much. She needed some knight in shining russet fur to lean on just a bit right then, even if it was only in her imagination.

Nick reluctantly let her go and she slipped out of his lap to sit next to him. Judy planted her back against the tree though she still leaned against his side, lacking the will to put any more space between them than that. His tail was still wrapped around her back with its tip resting against her side and his arm had refused to leave her shoulder, not that she wanted it to as she leaned into his side and whipped away the tears from her face.

Judy berated herself for her silly, stupid thoughts. It wasn't like Nick was some prince out of her romance books to come in and sweep her off her feet. Those where fiction, fun stories to fantasies over. That type of idyllic love simply didn't happen in real life. Her stupid imagination and romantic obsession were just taking advantage of her moment of weakness from Jessica's latest attempt to embarrass her; which Judy had to admit with a spike of anger had completely blindsided her. Nick hadn't come to Bunnyburrow like a hero from a tale to save his one true love, nor was he even in love with her. He'd said he _needed_ her, and she believed him. He needed her to be his friend. _That_ is what he had meant.

And anyway, Judy thought frowning as her internal balance starting to right itself once more as she leaned against Nick, she was no damsel in distress to be saved… Maybe someone in need of a good friend, she could certainly wouldn't object to that, but _not some helpless_ _damsel_.

 _And Jessica is going to learn that two when I get her back for picking on me and Nick._ She thought, feeling more like herself again.

Judy took a steadying breath before turning to Nick who was still eyeing her with worried concern and gave him a weak smile and a one-armed hug. If nothing else, at least she knew that he was her friend, a true friend that would stick with her through thick and thin. She had too few of those and she wanted him to know that if he ever needed her like she'd just needed him she'd be there for him too.

"Thanks, Nick." She said squeezing him tightly, "Thanks for being there for me, I… I'm usually not like this."

Nick gave a halfhearted chuckle and nuzzled her head causing a tingling sensation in the spot she thought he had kissed by her ear as her face heated again.

"Not used to getting singled out by your sister for the entire school to laugh at, are you?" he said trying to make it sound humorous.

Judy groaned just at the mention of the auditorium fiasco and leaned closer into Nick's side.

"I can't believe she did that!" she said angrily throwing up her paw like she wanted to grasp her sister and shake her. It was so much easier to be angry than to think about how embarrassing that had been… or how much she liked cuddling into Nick's side.

 _Not that I am cuddling into his side_ , she justified, _no, I'm just… leaning on him for support._

She refocused on Jessica before her stray thoughts could make her blush again.

"I swear she's made it her goal in life to annoy me in every possible way! She's always snooping around trying to find something to gossip about or needle me with! She just _had_ to find out about the marriage contract and let that lose, _had_ tell everyone all about my plans for getting into the academy! Why I swear if I hadn't threatened to tell Mom and Dad about her little 'magazine' collection she would have told everyone about my roma-" Judy's ears shot straight up, turning bright pink as she shut her mouth.

"About your… what exactly?" Nick asked in a friendly inquisitive way… a _too_ friendly way. She turned to him seeing a small grin forming on his muzzle and her ears heated from pink to red.

"About my nothing _Nick_!" she huffed at him, quickly turning away as his grin widened.

"You know," Nick said with a chuckle, "you're awfully cute when you get worked up. You look like you're ready to take on anything."

"Don't call me cute!" she snapped out of pure habit, before her mind imploded as she parsed what he'd just said.

**_Cute_ ** _, he called me 'cute'!_ _**Nick** _ _called me 'Cute'!_

No bunny had ever called her cute, she'd only even been called that in jest by mammals like Gideon.

And while Nick certainly was teasing her right then there was absolutely no malic behind it, he'd almost sounded… admiring.

_Oh, Gods… does he really think I'm 'cute'? not cute but 'cute' cute?_

Her heart seemed to suddenly explode and Judy was _very_ glad she was facing away from him right at that moment because her whole face was burning like the sun as the thought started repeating in her mind.

_Nick called me 'Cute'! He just called_ _**me** _ _cute!_

Nick nudged her shoulder still chuckling, "Right, forgot you didn't like to be called that even if you are, Carrots."

" _Nick_ ," she pleaded, "That word is different for bunnies, its… it has a lot of subtext you don't understand and I'm _not_ cute, certainly not in the way bunnies judge it; bunnies like Jessica are 'cute', I'm… not."

Nick let out of snort, "Really? Then you bunnies have a messed up sense of cute, because I don't think your sister is cute at all; She's too…" he waved a paw in a frustrated gesture

"Popular, pretty, _cute,_ " Judy provided feeling her ears sag.

"No, she's too… artificial. She wears all that make up, and a lot of her attituded and way she carries herself around others is she does just so others _will_ like her and think she's popular."

"And how would you know that?" Judy asked startled. She'd never heard anyone describe her sister like that before, she'd always been a bit envious of Jessica and her looks and popularity if she was being truthful to herself.

"I know because I'm good at putting up a front too." Nick said his voice losing most of his cheery tone. He let out a long sigh and seeming to recollect himself before tapping her on the shoulder. "You though, you don't hide anything. You might just be a _little bunny_ ," he said the words in a teasing tone, making quotation marks in the air with his fingers, "but you're kind, determined and strong… and it shows," he reached over and tapped her nose which immediately started twitching after his touch, which made Nick grin.

"And all that," he finished sounding pleased with himself, "Is why I think you _are_ cute, whatever you silly bunnies think that word means."

Nick looked right at her and Judy's breath caught in her throat at his smile while her heart started stuttering and her mind went blank. Completely blank… except for one thought about how much she wanted to kiss him. A thought that only grew louder and more instant as that moment stretched and stretched.

She didn't know how long he'd been looking at her like that but Nick's head finally lower toward hers and consumed by the thought Judy was just about to move up to meet his lips when his eyes seemed to snap back into focus and he quickly turned away, coughing into his paw as his ears pinned back.

Judy blinked.

 _Did he just try to… ?_ She thought as her mind seemed to spin, _Did_ _ **I**_ _just try to…_

She had been.

_Oh my gods, I just almost kissed him! I_ _**wanted** _ _to kiss him!? I wanted_ _**him** _ _to kiss me! But… But_

But even as Nick faced away from her she could see a rosy color flushing the inside of his ears.

_He called me cute and almost kissed me! And now he's blushing!_

Judy's mind was having a meltdown. There was an implication there, something so obvious she couldn't quite process the idea of it. Her mind kept coming back to what had just happened, what she'd wanted to happen, and Nick's flustered reaction and tried putting them all together, only to get a gibberish answer she couldn't comprehend.

Nick coughed again and cleared his throat before speaking as if trying to focus on anything else but what had just happened.

"So, um… Judy, I mean Carrots, I… ah, about Jessica…" he groaned and flopped his head into his paws, "What I mean to say… that is, um… what are we going to do about your sister?" he finally got out with his head still in his paws.

"You mean beside tracking her down and walloping her?" Judy nearly growled, the mention of her sister doing a nice job of helping her regain control of her mind. She decided that Nick's train of thought was a good idea; Jessica was an immediate problem, all these confusing feelings she was having towards her new friend and her rampant speculations on _his_ thoughts and feelings were something she could deal with later… a _long_ time later. Certainly not right now, or today… or this week. Or at least not until they got Jessica back, not till then at the _very_ soonest.

Judy nodded adamantly, deciding to shelve those terrifying thoughts and possibilities for the moment in the face of a clear and present danger that was the current the bane of her existence.

 _And what about those… dreams? Memories? Could they have been memories?_ Judy thought, but quickly decided those could wait as well… though maybe not as long. The mystery behind those… whatever they were was like an itch in the back of her mind. And she thought she knew where to look for the first clue in order to sort that out as well. But she couldn't go running off to investigate it right then; there were other priorities she had to deal with first.

Nick had lifted his head back up and was nodding at her stated intent to get vengeance on her sister.

"Right, Carrots. I'm not really the kind of mammal to _not_ give as good as I get, though…" he added looking at her with a small sheepish smile and shrug, "I usually don't act like I did this morning on the bus. I…" he swallowed and looked down, losing all vestiges of the smile, "I... really don't like fighting."

"We'll then, how do you feel about helping me tie Jessica up and burying her shoulder deep in the carrot field for a night?" Judy asked and Nick gave a barking laugh before looking back at her in surprise.

"You're not serious, are you?" he asked, a grin breaking across his face.

"Sure I am." Judy said with an absolutely straight face, "I could probably even get some of my siblings to help…" she furrowed her brow though before muttering, "but that probably won't be enough. Everybody does that and a few of my other siblings would probably have her dug up within half an hour. Still… we could get some nice pictures… maybe bury her right in a row of actual carrots. Would even give that stupid nickname of yours for us bunnies some merit."

Nick laughed again but shook his head.

"As amusing as that would be Judy, that nickname is only for you, it would spoil it if I called anyone else Carrots." He said still chuckling.

"Oh, come on! Why do you have to only call me that?" Judy pouted, before wheedling a bit, "Think of it! we could grab some paint form the shed too, paint her ears orange with little green tips!" Judy said giggling and waggled her own ears, "After all that nickname its Carrot **s,** not Carrot. And who knows, maybe she'll fit in so well with all the other carrots out there my siblings will just leave her there to grow up a bit. We wouldn't have to deal with her again until the next harvest!"

Nick was snickering, grinning fully now, but still shaking his head.

"Nope! Can't do it, Judy. My mom always told me that ' _nick'_ names are special. You'll always be the one and only Carrots to me," He bumped her shoulder playfully and laughed, "And anyway, even all painted up, Jessica would make for a poor imitation of you!" he grinned looking down at her and she could feel her cheeks heat a bit, the heat even more as he looked more closely at her and 'hummm'ed as his eyes lit up.

"Say, Judy. I take it that you're okay with pranks and hustles then, right?" he asked his grin starting to turn into a smirk.

She crossed her arms warningly but couldn't help a small grin from forming.

"Maybe," she said cautiously stretching out the word, "That depends on exactly what kind of prank or hustle were talking about and only if they deserve it."

Nick nodded again, "And I'm guessing from all the make up your sister was wearing that she has a lot of it and uses it all the time?"

"That would be accurate…" Judy said narrowing her eyes as a sneaking suspicion of what he was thinking started to dawn on her.

"Be careful, Slick," She said warningly though, "As good a revenge as messing with or taking all her makeup would be, that's in her room and that's a safe zone by the bunny sibling war accords my parents brokered. If we mess with anything in her room she can do the same to ours, and I'm not sure you want that kind of escalation. It could be end up being worse than a kerflufflepocalyps."

"Hummmm…" Nick looked at her again, his smirk stretched across his muzzle as his tail started thumping next to her, "And what if _we_ aren't the ones who messed with it?" Nick asked, his eyes sparkling with an infectious mischief.

"Just what are you planning Nicholas Piberius Wilde?" She asked a grin breaking across her face as well.

Nick was just about to answer when the school bell rang marking then end of the period.

He shut his mouth and smirked before getting to his feet and then helping her up as well.

"Tell you what Carrots, meet me back here for lunch and I'll tell you all about it." he said with a wink, "I can't be late for my next class after all the trouble I've already gotten into this morning."

Judy huffed and rolled her eyes impatiently, before muttering, "Fine, but you'd better tell me then, okay?"

"Deal." Nick said and then surprised her with a quick hug. It was brief though. Nick let go before she even had the chance to hug him back and he turned and quickly strolled (almost ran) away from her as his tail swished behind him.

Nick turned before he disappeared around the corner of the building, calling back, "See you then _Carrots_!" and then he was gone.

Judy just stared at where he'd been before finally shaking herself out of her stupor and while trying to get her breathing back under control, headed off to her own class, wondering the whole way if the darker shade of his russet fur on his cheeks when he'd turned back to her had been a blush, the trick of the light or maybe just her imagination.


	18. Chapter 17 – The Mathematics of Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NEW: If your a long time reader you might have noticed a new thumbnail pic for this story (if your on FF) or seen the new cover image on chapter 1 (if your on Ao3), Then again if your a newer reader you probably already known about it. But regardless, its worth checking out again! See the full cover picture, not just the thumbnail portion of it (That's only half the picture!) over on the Ao3 site version of the story (just google Zanrok and Ao3 and you can find it on my Ao3 page) or at Ziegelzeig's deviantart page: ziegelzeig (.dot.) deviantart (.dot.) com/art/Old-Arrangements-679663825
> 
> Thanks again Zeig for this awesome picture!
> 
> Disclaimer: Did I steal stuff from a movie I don't own? Did I refill the sugar bowl in the ships mess by the coffee maker with salt? Did I intentionally write a chapter about the most boring subject in school in an attempt to irritate readers so badly that they'd stop reading this and the navy might kick me out? Of course not! How could you possibly think that of innocent little me?!
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: I laughed when someone asked me if I'd bought the insurance for my ACME Typo-be-Gone product. *Snicker* What fool would ever pay extra for that silly buyers' insurance?

Bunnyburrow was a small town, and small towns lived on gossip. Judy knew this, she'd grown up here after all and she knew that it would take a while for _any_ sort of gossip, even the most mundane talk of how much the crops were growing, to die down. But that didn't stop her from wishing that the students could find something, _anything_ else to talk about than her and Nick. It had been a rough enough morning without all that, rough enough that she'd had a hard time even paying attention to her teachers with all her distracted thoughts, particularly one thought that just wouldn't seem to go away.

 _Nick called me cute!_ Part of her shouted with an annoying amount of glee.

 _Why am I so happy about that?! He doesn't even know what that means!_ Judy countered then tried thinking of something else,

_Focus, what idea could Nick have come up with to get Jessica back? What has he thought of that I haven't?_

_And what were those images? Were those actually memories or was I just imagining it?_

_It looked like the Farm's old tree with the swing… I'll have to see if I can find time later today to check that out…_

_'Cute!' *Squeal*_

_Focus! No thinking about Nick… or foxes at all! Certainly not about how his fur just makes me want to snuggle against him, or how soft his tail is…._

**_Focus_ ** _!_

Mrs. Woolstein might not have had a very engaging voice but Judy had never had trouble paying attention before. Today though… today she felt like this was something from the popular Harry Otter's Hogwarts stories with Professor Beaver Binn's ghost droning relentlessly on and on…

_"… both the constant of the ratio of a circles circumference to its diameter, known as pi,…"_

Judy's stomach rumbled as she thought about her mother's famous festival winning pies. She couldn't help looking plaintively at the clock. It seemed to be moving exceptionally slow today, and she couldn't help wishing the period would just end so they could get to lunch.

_I didn't even check to see what mom packed for lunch today. I wonder if Nick will like it? He's a predator, don't they like tofo and that bugga burger meat stuff? Did mom pack him something special or did he just get what we got?_

Judy let at a sigh trying not to worry about it and making a note to herself to talk to Nick about that later. She'd need to know about stuff like this if he was going to be staying with them…

 _And since you're probably going to be marrying him too…_ part of her mind added which had the effect of detonating a stick of dynamite amidst her thoughts, scattering them everywhere.

"… as well as the base number for the natural logarithm, known as 'e' are important _irrational_ numbers…"

 _Me. marry Him?!_ Was the first thought that surfaced causing some part of her mind to automatically reject the very idea as preposterous,

_Irrational, i.e. crazy, ridiculous._

_A bunny marrying a fox._

_Insane, nonsensical, loony_

Some mad part of her mind seized on that and started chanting, _Loony!… loony judy marry nary a bunny but a foxy woxy…_

Judy missed the next few moments as she tried pulling her frayed thoughts back together. She might have intellectually accepted that she had an arranged marriage but the reality of it was harder to acknowledge, especially with just how bizarrely different it was from what she'd expected.

She'd _expected_ to get stuck in some loveless marriage to some buck that would inevitably disapprove of her life goals; not that she would let that stop her and if it led to an estranged marriage, well she'd be fine with that too, all she _had_ to do was _marry_ the buck. Except that he wasn't a buck… and he didn't disapprove of her goals… and he'd said he thought she was _cute…_

Judy could feel the start of a blush and stubbornly tried to ignore it.

As rocky as their friendship had started, she liked him… well not like _like_ , just normal friend's 'like'…

a lot…

More than she would have thought she could have grown to like someone given that she'd only met him _yesterday_ …

sort of…

 _Dream memories I'm not even sure are real_ _ **Don't**_ _count!_ Judy yelled at herself in her mind.

The whole situation was like something out of a fairy story; Well… more like one of her romance novels… there was her favorite one about true love with the bunny and the fox farmboy…

 _And those are_ _**Stories** _ _because they're_ _**Fiction** _ _! Bunnies don't marry foxes in real life! It's not_ _**normal** _ _! Nick isn't going to end up being my one and only 'true love'… that's absurd! Unreal!_ _**Imaginary** _ _!_

"-Imaginary number 'i' in combination with these irrational constants which can be found throughout the nature, can form the very basis for the our most common 'normal' numbers. Take for example Eweler's identity where she shows that the negative of 'e' raise to the power of 'i' multiplied by pi equals 1. Hence these irrational and imaginary numbers are in reality no more different than any other normal number and in some ways a very basis for those 'normal' numbers. It's just another expression of this wonderful thing we all love called math."

Judy groaned to herself and slumping in her seat as Mrs. Woolstein continued her lecture, scratching away confidently with her chalk on the blackboard as if trying to show that all of Judy's problems could be solved as easily as those equations.

 _If it only was that easy_ … Judy thought morosely. The whole mess with her… well _their_ arranged marriage was just so damned complicated and confusing and flat out different from what she'd prepared herself for; she didn't know how to think or feel about it. She hadn't had _time_ to really think or figure about how _she_ felt about it. That's why she'd been working very hard to ignore it all for the moment. She could handle Nick being her friend right now; _liked_ having him as her friend (and maybe needed his friendship too, she admitted to herself).

Nick's friendship was oddly… comforting, reassuring. But the idea of Nick as her **_boyfriend_** , let alone _fiancée_ or her _mate_ and _husband_?!

 _I've never even had a real boyfriend before!_ She couldn't help thinking desperately for a second before…

 _He called me cute!_ Followed by a sort of mental _*_ _ **Pop**_ _*_ like a fuse in Judy's mind had overloaded and fizzled out.

Judy barely managed to stop herself from faceplanting into her notes and instead settled for slumping just a bit more in her seat.

The complex mess of thoughts and emotions the mere idea of… _Nick_ , well, Nick as something more than her friend was… terrifying (… and maybe, weirdly, _ever so slightly_ exhilarating… but mostly just terrifying). For the first time in her life she felt like she wanted to run away from a problem and hide in a hole until it went away.

"-In fact, a special case combining these irrational and imaginary numbers can exemplify a truly amazing mathematical principle of the world and make calculations with complex numbers far easier. This form of Eweler's equations is an important mathematical identity. It can help take what seems like an impossibly _complex_ equation filled with _irrationality_ and _imaginary_ components and shift it into an easy to understand form. _Lovely_ , isn't it?" Mrs. Woolstein enthused, tapped the board, proudly beaming at the equation as she started in on some examples of its use, "In fact since the invention of mathematical identities, there have only been five that mathematicians have argued are the most elegant, the most pure." She tapped the board again smiling, "But this one leaves them all behind."

There were a few groans from students and even Judy rolled her eyes at this episode of Mrs. Woolstein's infamous philosophical expansions on their math lesson.

 _At least this time she didn't get poetic_. Judy thought with an amused snort. She was actually a little grateful to the teacher since the sheer normalcy of Mrs. Woolstein romanticized talk of mathematics felt like proof that the world was still operating normally and hadn't gone (entirely) crazy.

Their teacher, finished with expounding on the brilliance of the long ago sheep mathematician, continued on with the examples as Judy's thoughts started to drift while the clock seemed to tic away ever so slowly. She watched the seconds hand creep like a sloth was moving it and started thinking about the half remembered glimpses of what she'd recalled before, about the old oak tree, the tire swing, the other kit, the heart with the J + N.

_I can go looking for clues at the tree and tire swing later this afternoon, then maybe I'll be able to figure out if-_

Judy's ear swiveled a bit catching her name amid a muffled conversation from behind her.

 _Oh, come on! Do the other students have to keep gossiping even in the middle of class? We're supposed to be learning here not-! Wait what was that Mrs. Woolstein said?_ Judy stopped grousing for a second to check her notes she'd only half consciously been taking as Mrs. Woolstein droned on.

 _Oh, right complex identities. Good thing I reviewed those… last… weekend…_ Judy's thoughts trailed to a stop as she noticed the idle sketch her paw had also been making in the corner of her notebook and flushed before quickly trying to erase it.

_I only drew that because I've been thinking about the mystery of those images from earlier, certainly not for any other reason!_ She justified quickly, adamantly nodding to herself.

Her pencil though was a cheap one and it's eraser hadn't worked very well, if at all. Despite her best efforts, Judy could still easily make out the doodle. She looked at it in dismay for a full half minute, feeling her cheeks warm and then snuck a quick glance across the room only to blush more as her eyes met Nick's looking back over at her. They both quickly turned, looking away almost as soon as it happened, but that didn't help with the embarrassment and other odd and strange feelings that where washing through her.

There was a snicker from another student behind her and Judy's ears turned scarlet as she focused on paying attention to the teacher and taking notes again. (actual notes, with no additional doodles of _any_ sort, no ZPD police badges or police doodles and certainly no bunny's and foxes booping noses).

'See that? Told you it was true,' whispered the student who had snickered.

'So, Jude finally fell for someone, had to happen eventually. I mean, she is a _bunny_ after all.'

'Oh its _more_ than just falling for him.' There was another snicker and Judy tried harder to focus on her notes, even making sure that her ears were angled to try _not_ to catch the other students hushed conversation. Not that it worked.

'and you know that only from the two of them sneaking glances at each other?' the second whisperer said disbelievingly before adding sarcastically, 'You steal glances at Mary all the time and _you_ two aren't dating.'

'Ass'

'call me a donkey again and I'll put one of my horns up _your_ -'

"oh keep your wool on, I _know_ because I can smell his mark on her. You could too if you had a decent nose.'

A fiery heat started spreading up from her face to her ears and Judy pressed them down hard against her back, but she could still make out what they were saying.

' _Really_? You sure it's a _mark_? I thought Gideon was just making that up?'

'Nope, not this time.'

'You _sure_ it's that, not just some of his scent from the two of them rubbing against each other? I mean they _were_ caught making out yesterday and then they ran off together right after we were released from the auditorium; they were probably just making out again.'

'Oh I'm _sure_ they were. The way he keeps making puppy eyes at her and she keeps sneaking glances back? And his scent is _all_ over her,' there was a soft sniffing sound, and Judy wanted to hide her face in her note book as she her blush raged out of control, 'but _that's_ a scent mark. I might not have a canine's nose, but mines far better than yours.'

'Holy wool and –'

**Thwap**

Mrs. Woolstein's ruler slapped against chalk board, instantly gaining the classrooms undivided attention as she pointed looked at the students behind Judy.

"Since Mark and Jason are having such an animated conversation about what I'm _sure_ is the lesson, they will get to answer this question." She rapped on the board again, "Up you go boys. Complete the proof on the board."

There were a number of muffled snickers from the class as the two students made their way up to the blackboard, picked up pieces of chalk and then stared shame facedly at the question, clearly not knowing where to even start.

Mrs. Woolstein sighed and then used her 'we just covered this' teaching voice and her ruler to prod the two students along in working through the math proof.

Judy looked at the board and then back at her notes where she already had the proof written down before taking a subtle sniff of her arm.

 _I don't smell like Nick!_ She thought (hoped), _and his mark wasn't_ _ **that**_ _strong…_

At first, she couldn't really smell anything different at all, but then she caught how his scent was mingled with hers. It was faint but there non-the less there on her arms and shirt and … pretty much everywhere hiding among her own scent and the faint ever present smell of his mark.

_Buttered Carrots! I how long did I spend holding onto him earlier?_

The memory of two strong arms and a tail wrapped around her and how she'd all but buried her face into his fur suddenly came back and, conflictingly, panicked _and_ comforted her.

The combination of the two polar opposite feelings was… odd and unsettling and she didn't know what to make of it.

She glanced over at Nick again and saw he was staring back at her, though this time he looked a bit worried and instead of quickly glancing away, caught and held her eyes. He gave her a questioning expression and then pointedly glanced up and twitched his ears twice.

There was moment of confusion and then Judy's paws shot up and grabbed her own ears, yanking them down, from where they'd been stuck somewhere halfway between up and down (and maybe a bit sideways too), twitching spasmodically like they couldn't decide from her jumbled thoughts in what direction they should go.

**Thwap**

Judy flinched at the sound of the ruler hitting the blackboard, already knowing what was coming.

"And it seems that Judith and Nicholas would like to join Mark and Jason," Mrs. Woolstein said sternly, scratching out another question next to the other two students and then pointing to it, "Up you go, lets see if you two were at least listening better than they were."

Not looking at much besides her feet, Judy got up and headed to the blackboard, though her ears at least had finally decided where they wanted to be and where drooping heavily as a new round of snickers emanated from the class despite Mrs. Woolsteins disapproving look she gave at the noise.

Judy got to the board and pick up a piece of chalk, and then almost dropped it as she looked up to find that Nick was already right next to her.

 _How'd he do that?! I didn't even hear him!_ Judy thought recovering from her start.

Nick though, just picked up another piece of chalk and gestured to the board in with half a smirk that seemed more for the watching classes benefit than hers.

Judy glanced back over to see every pair of eyes in the class room, (even Mark and Jason's) trained on them, and a sudden wave of embarrassment washed through her.

"Psst," Nick hissed quietly and flicked her foot with the tip of his tail in a causal motion that probably looked accident, "Ignore them, let's just get this done before the period ends so Mrs. Math-My-Dream-Ram doesn't make us stay afterwards to finish it."

Judy looked back up to Nick again who outwardly looked far more relaxed than she did, though she could see his uneasiness and embarrassment in his eyes… as well as what she was pretty sure was concern.

Flushing Judy turned back to the board and furiously attacked the problem.

It took a few moments for her to realized that she was hogging the board and she glanced apologetically at Nick, but he did seem to mind. So, determined to focus on the math problem and not her swirling thoughts about _him_ , she continued writing away on the blackboard.

She was halfway though, when Nick shifted, the motion causing him to brush up against her and instantly freezing her where she stood. But his arm, which had brushed hers, just continued up and Nick added a negative to the equation that she only then realized she'd accidently dropped from the previous line.

Hesitantly, Judy glanced at Nick but he just gave her a small shrug and smile. She quickly turning back to the board as her heart seemed to jolt and her cheeks heated.

They didn't speak or look at each other for the next minute that it took Judy to finish the problem, but Nick seamlessly made two more corrections to simple mistakes that she blamed on her distracted state.

It didn't matter how much she tried to focus on the problem, some part of her seemed to be hyper aware of the fox next to her. How his arm would brush against hers, how his breathing seemed long and slow as if he was savoring each breath ( _was he discretely sniffing her again?_ )… how she caught herself starting to lean ever so slightly into his side.

With an effort of will and a nearly audible growl of frustration Judy scribbled out the final line and answer, only to groan as Nick reached over an added the decimal in the answer she'd forgotten.

"Well," Mrs. Woolstein said in a grudgingly approving voice as she stopped and reviewed their work, "At least you two seem to have actually able been paying attention," she gave a disapproving glance over at the other two students at the board of whose work she'd been using as an example to the class of common math mistakes to watch out for. She turned back to Judy and Nick though and sternly said, "But in the future try to save all your looks at each other for some other time; this class is for the love of mathematics not your significant other." Mrs. Woolstein finished, her ruler flashed and there was a softer _thwack_ as Nick gave a started yelp and grabbed his tail protectively in his paws from we're it had been curled around the back of her legs.

Judy gave startled meep as the class laughed and the school bell rang.

 _How long has he been doing that? How did I not notice he was doing that?!_ Judy frantically thought, then looked up at a very embarrassed fox.

There was a moment in which their eyes met, her lavender eyes meeting his emerald ones, and in that moment, with his normal sly defensiveness gone, she though she saw something else behind those eyes, something that made her eyes go wide and her heart hammer.

_He called me cute._

_But he's a fox and I'm a_ _**bunny** _ _!_

_And he almost kissed me._

She saw the insides of Nick's ears turned bright pink and then flushed hard herself and stammered out the first thing that popped into her mind.

"Lunch! I mean its lunch period… yes, I ah…" Judy glanced around desperately and then her eyes caught on the hallway door some of the students were already headed out of, "left my lunch in my locker! Yes, I need to go get it before…"

Judy suddenly remembered her promise from earlier and looked at Nick only to blush even harder and stammer incoherently. She made a futile gesture at herself, him, and the door before squeaking out, "grab my lunch, couple minutes-" and then bolted out of the room.

* * *

Nick stood there in a sort of horrified embarrassed shock as he watched Judy disappear into the flow of students in the hallway.

_Stupid, Stupid, STUPID tail! What the hell is wrong with me? I didn't even know it was doing that! I didn't mean to embarrass her like that!_

Nick gave a pleading look towards the door but Judy was already gone.

There was some snickering from next to him as one of the other students that had been called up to the board, a bobcat and one of the few other predators at the school, tapped his nose and gave him thumbs up with a huge smirk.

Nick's ears went flat against his skull and he scowled at the other student, but the cat just laughed, grabbed his bag and left the room.

Nick held the scowl until the cat was well gone but then finally sighed and headed over to grab his notebook and bag. If there'd been one minor silver lining to this latest disaster it was that most of the other students had been more preoccupied with getting out of the classroom and to lunch than they had been in staying around to gawk and laugh.

After finishing gathering his things, Nick took a second to try recomposing himself. To regain that casual attitude where he could just let to looks, and whispers and everything else the other students could throw at him, wash off like rain hitting a duck. That was the way to deal with it all, he told himself, the less you react the quicker they'll become bored with it and move on to something else, just don't let them see that they get to you.

A few more breaths and he had his protective mask back in place and was headed for the door… only to stop as he realized that Judy had left all her stuff at her desk when she'd abruptly left.

With another sigh, he went back over to collect her things. They were supposed to meet up for lunch anyway so he could simply give it to her then, hell it might even help with his apology for having a rude tail with its own mind. Maybe-

Nick stopped dead for a second as he picked up Judy's notepad. He blinked, and took a second look at the doodle in the corner of the page, sure he hadn't seen it right the first time, but no it was still there…

His stopped heart took a hesitant pounding step, then another, before beating away with abandon and a sudden blush broke through his redonned mask and suffused his cheeks and ears with a searing heat.

Moving quickly, he put the rest of Judy's stuff in her bag feeling like he'd just done something wrong, like reading through her diary, but there was also a wild uncontrollable happiness that seemed to be flooding through him that he was finding impossible to control.

Nick picked up her bag and headed for the door again, only to stop and take a moment to frown at his tail and will it to stop wagging.

 _That means nothing!_ He told himself, _That was just a doodle, nothing else. And I don't even know if I like her like that!_

Then as if to prove himself wrong, he remembered how it felt to hold her, how he wanted to protect her, how he liked her smile, how she'd been worried about him when he'd fallen in the shower, how it had felt to kiss her…

Nick grabbed the front of his shirt like he could will his heart to stop beating away in a frantic mad dash.

 _I'm going to be the one to decide who I love!_ He snarled to himself as he barred his teeth, _I'm not going to lose myself to Judy just because that deputy thinks I've imprinted on her! I'll be the one to decide if I love her and if I want to marry her, and screw whatever that pre-arranged marriage contract says! She's my friend and I'll protect her because I want to not because of some instinct!_

Still frowning, Nick slowly let go of his shirt and then after one last deep breath, started toward his own locker determinedly thinking about what Mrs. Hopps might have put in his lunch. He hadn't looked but he'd smelled mostly vegetables… though there had also been the smell of blueberries and the thought of having his secret favorite treat not only made his stomach growl but helped settle his agitated mind.

A lunch with carrots and blueberries was a pleasant enough idea, even if he'd never exactly been fond of vegetables before; he could spend lunch away from all the stares of the other students having a bit of fun with Judy as they discussed his idea about how to get back at Jessica.

Thinking of that, and only that (certainly not of what it might be like to kiss Judy again), Nick hurried off, not even noticing that his tail had started to wag again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The WildeHopps Navy gives toannghe1997 from Deviantart a full broadside salute for the awesome little piece of art for this chapter! Oh wait, your reading this on Fanfiction (.dot.) net and didn't see any art? Well then you should go check it out at:
> 
> toannghe1997 (.dot.) deviantart (.dot.) com/art/Student-note-680922652
> 
> Your really should, its cute and hilarious *Grin* and its certainly not a 'Daaaaawwww' trap.
> 
> …
> 
> Also a call out to MinscLovesBoo for a bit of inspiration in this chapter. If you've read his story, you should be able to pick up on it and if not, then go read his story! :P


	19. Chapter 18 – (i)^2*e = Irrational Emotions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: The captain is not happy with me. (and I'm not happy with him, but apparently my opinion doesn't count *grumbles*) I have apparently not been working hard enough at writing stories with stolen characters from Disney. And know in an apparent attempt to get me to act more sailor-ly he has me on a diet of spinach *Ugh*. Personally, I think the captain just watches too many cartoons, There's no way spinach works in real life like it does for Popeye the Sailor or that Bunnies and Foxes are as cute and fluffy as they are in the movies, right?... Right?
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: Huh, I called the ACME warranty department because people say that my cartoon recommended spellcheck software isn't working. They put me on hold… but I'm starting to think they just hung up…
> 
> Math Disclaimer: Bonus Problem! I've added a math equation to this and if anyone understands the meaning behind it, I'll post the next chapter within 48 hours. Here's a hint: its highschool math :P

 

The pawful of cold water splashed over Judy's heated face and she looked up from the bathroom sink to stare at her reflection in the mirror. Droplets of water ran down her fur and pattered onto the sink as her breathing started to return to something remotely normal.

"Right," Judy said to her reflection, "Get a grip on yourself. So what if his tail was brushing up against you and he looked at you. That's no reason to almost start hyperventilating!" she glared at her reflection sternly and demanded, "What if you're after some criminal and they wave their tail and look at you? Are you just going to swoon on the spot?"

The abrupt mental image of Nick looking like some bad boy with his shirt collar popped, tail waving seductively as he winked at her, saying 'I guess you caught me Officer Carrots, are you going to take me away forever?' invaded her mind and her knees suddenly became a little weak.

Judy quickly splashed a few more pawfuls of water over her face before she really _did_ start hyperventilating.

…

"Okay," Judy said looking back up at her reflection in the mirror after purging that last thought from her mind, "That's just about enough of that! I don't care if he's… he's…"

Judy gritted her teeth nearly snarling out the next word.

" _cute_ …" she took another deep breath and then continued lecturing her reflection in the mirror, "and charming and good looking…"

_And he smells nice and feels nice and his eyes and smirk are…_

Teeth clenching even more she squashed those thoughts like her mother putting her foot down when a kerfluffle war got out of hand, " **and** that's _no_ reason to go around acting like some headless lovesick fool!"

Judy froze for a second thinking back on what she'd said to herself…

 _Lovesick_...

Her heart, after a small eternity of stillness, gave a thunderous beat like someone pounding on a gong, and then another…

_no. No. NO._

"Not that you're lovesick!" she quickly amended, a little panic eating away at the edges of her stern resolute tone, "You're… you're just… just… crushing a little bit because he's cute and he's new… that's _all_. This is like that Justine Beaver fad faze when half the school thought they were in love with him…"

_Except Nick is_ _**far** _ _more handsome than Beaver ever could be…_

Judy ignored that thought too, "… So don't go losing your head to some fluff filled dream just because some cute boy complimented you and looks admiringly at you!"

 _Called you cute! He called you Cute! Nick thinks your_ _ **cuteee!**_ , some nattering part of her mind nearly sang happily and she gagged it to get it to shut up.

"and _even_ if he really thinks I am _cute_ that doesn't mean he's _really_ interested in me! Jessica goes around giving admiring looks at half the bucks in our class and most of them do the same to the does and yet all of that rarely even becomes casual dating let alone a serious relationship!"

 _And why are you thinking about serious relationships and Nick?_ Part of her asked and Judy nearly growled at herself.

"I'm not. I'm overreacting because my newest friend happens to be…

_A hunk? A handsome russet furred roguishly charming predator? A sexy f-_

"… happens to be _cute_ and might, _might_ , find me slightly attractive… maybe…" She took a breath continuing trying to curtail the warm, excited, possibly hopeful feeling, "Not that that's likely. Be real Judy! I mean he's a _fox_ , and I'm probably just imagining it! It's not like I've ever had a boyfriend and it's probably just my bunny instincts making me see something that isn't there, and I _won't_ let those control me! Never have, and _never_ will! _And_ , just because he's my friend doesn't mean he 'like' _likes_ me, even if he really _did_ think I was _cute_. Why would a fox be seriously interested in a bunny, especially some loony bunny that falls… apart… … every…" she trailed off, her ears wilting as she looked at herself in the mirror, remembering what Nick had said earlier, what he thought of her…

_"but you're kind, determined and strong… and it shows,"_

And yet all she'd done today was break into tears and hold onto him and then blush and run away like some fluff brained ditz.

"How can he think I'm strong after all of that?" she asked to her reflection, her voice cracking slightly as her ears hung limply, "how can he think that when I'm having a nervous breakdown, hiding in a bathroom while he's…"

_While he's probably wondering where you are. He's probably waiting for you thinking you've gone off and ditched him…_

"Oh gods, how long have I been in here?" Judy nearly shouted, her ears shooting straight up in alarm as she looked around, ears swiveling to catch any sound.

Most of the noise in the hallway had died down, so most of the students were probably already eating lunch, and she was still in here, talking to herself in a mirror.

Judy snatched some paper towels out of the dispense and after hurriedly drying her face, bolted out of the door.

…

Nick was waiting by the tree, facing the other direction as Judy came tearing around the corner of the building at a full sprint. Seeing that he was still there, Judy tried to calm down and slowed to a fast walk, not wanting Nick to see her in such a frazzled state.

As she approached him though, she could see that he seemed… tense, worried? His hind paw was shifting nervously as he looked toward the back of the school where the cafeteria patio was and his shorter triangular ears where perked up, one of them twitching occasionally as sounds of conversation and laughter came from where most of the other students had congregated.

"Hey, sorry I'm late, I-" Judy started to say, but was cut off as Nick gave a startled yip, jumping while his tail puffed like a bottle brush in surprise as he whipped around and nearly dropped the bag he was holding in his paws.

He fumbled with it for a second, before finally catching it and then looked up at her in embarrassment.

"I… ah… you startled me!" Nick stammered for a second before sniffing the air a with a confused expression.

"You know, Bunnies can be rather quiet and sneaky when we want to be," she said, managing a smug grin, "Evolution made us that way so we could get away from predators, but I guess it works just as well for sneaking up on them too." She poked him and almost giggled as he gave another short hop in surprise.

"No. I mean, sure. But," Nick's ears splayed back, then popped up as his nose twitched, sniffing the air again. The almost comical look of confusion still plastered on his face made Judy actually giggle out loud.

"I _…_ you were up wind of me, I should have _smelled_ you…" he muttered almost incomprehensibly as his ears started turning pink while she tried to stifle her amusement, "I mean you do smell like…" he took another sniff of the air, stopped then took a sniff of himself, before blushing hard.

A sudden suspicion of _why_ Nick hadn't picked up on her scent killed her giggle fit for her. She'd gotten so used to their scents mixing after all that she hadn't even thought about it until those other students had started talking about it…

"Um…" Nick started saying, glancing around like he was looking for _anything_ else to talk about to fill the sudden awkward silence that had fallen between them, "I… ah, Oh!" he suddenly held out the bookbag he was holding… and Judy realized that it was _her_ bookbag… the one in her panic she had forgotten all about.

"You, ah, left all your stuff on your desk in math class so I picked it up for you." Nick said, offering her the bookbag in an almost desperate manner.

 _Right, I went haring off like an idiot and left all my stuff just lying about_ , Judy thought wanting to slap herself as she mumbled an embarrassed thank you and reached out take her bag, _He probably thinks I'm an absent minded fluffy brained bunny that spends her time in class doodling rather than taking note-_

Judy froze, her paws just touching Nick's as she took the bookbag…

_Notes… Notebook… The notebook I left open on my desk… The note book with the.._

Judy looked up over the bag straight into Nick's face and could feel her eyes going wide.

_The Doodle…_

Judy snatched the bag away from Nick, hugging it protectively like she could prevent him from looking right through the bag and the notebook and seeing the doodle inside.

"You didn't look at my notes did you?!" she nearly screeched, except that it came out as more of a half choked plea.

Nick's eyes went a little wide and the inside of his ears turned nearly the same shade of red as his fur before they snapped back, flat against his skull and he waved his paws franticly.

"No, no, I didn't see any drawi- notes, I mean _notes_! Nothing at all! I just put your stuff in your bag and brought it here, nothing else! Really!"

Judy's ears were standing so rigidly on end in alarm they almost hurt and her nose began to twitch spasmodically as she tried to speak, "Y-you d-didn't look-k at i-it? You p-promise?"

"Promise! I didn't go looking through your notes! Ranger scouts honor!" he said quickly holding his paw up with two crossed fingers, then froze as he looked at his paw and quickly uncrossed his fingers, as his other paw slipped behind his back. With his upheld paw, he gave her a two-fingered ranger scout salute, "Promise I didn't! Cross my heart and everything!"

Judy's nose only twitching faster and she felt like her eyes might pop out of her head they had gone so wide in alarm. She tried to say something, but _something_ wasn't quite working right with her breathing and all that came out was a terrified sounding meep.

Nick, now looking a bit wide eyed and terrified dropped his paw and looked around desperately again.

"Umm… ah, so know that we have that cleared up, _because I totally did_ _ **not**_ _look at your notebook,_ " he added in one quick long breath almost too fast for her to hear, "why don't we… we…" his eyes seemed to snag on his bookbag laying against the tree, "Right! Why don't we eat lunch and discuss our revenge!" he said way too enthusiastically, relief flooding his voice as he took her paw and led her to the tree in a distracted manner as he talked.

"I sooo hungry right now I could eat dirt, _not_ that I think your mom's cooking is dirt!" he waved his free paw quickly, "Just an expression! The lunch smelled really good! a lot of vegetables maybe, _ehem_ , not that, that's a bad thing! My mom is always saying that I need to eat more veggies and less junk food or that I'll get fat. I mean who doesn't love a junky bug-a-burger meal every now and then, right? But I guess she's right, I wouldn't want to end up looking like Gideon, chunky just isn't my style, though I have to admit that veggies aren't _exactly_ my _favorite_ food ( _far from it_ ), _ehem_ , now Fruit on the other hand. Who doesn't love fruit and I could swear by the scent that your mom made something with blueberries, and I **_love_** blueberries…"

Nick continued chattering, not pausing long enough for her to speak as he dug though his bookbag though she caught a few frightened glances in her direction before he finally pulled out a brown paper lunch bag with his name written in her mother's handwriting on the front.

"Ah-hah! Found it!" he said turning to her with a smile that didn't quite hide his apparent nervous apprehension while he took a seat under the tree and looked at her questioningly, the worry starting to eat away at his smile.

"So, ah… do bunnies eat standing up, because I heard that only bovine do that and I thought that was some sort of joke…" he tried smiling again but it wavered.

Judy blinked, her nose still twitching and Nick continued,

"If, ah… you want… we could go find a table over on the cafeteria patio, but it might be hard to talk about our plan without someone overhearing us…"

Nick was still looking at her, trying to hold a cheery expression though his smile was starting to falter badly and his ears where wilting.

Judy blinked again, suddenly realizing that she'd been standing there, still clutching her bag ever since he'd let go of her paw to grab his lunch.

"Oh! Right!" she gave a forced laugh, "just… ah… got caught up thinking about… how to get back at Jessica, right! Just lost in my thoughts there for a second. Um… let's eat then and you can tell me your plan." She tried smiling back at Nick, who looked partially reassured, though he cocked his head looking up at her and smiling a bit more naturally, asked slowly,

"Sooooo… _do_ bunnies eat standing up?"

Judy looked down at herself, _still_ standing where she had been, "Oh! Ah… no!" she gave another forced laugh and flopped down beside Nick, trying to act like nothing was wrong… and sat right on his tail.

Nick gave a pained yelp nearly bouncing off the ground and sending his lunch bag flying.

"Sorry! Sorry! I didn't mean to… Sorry!" Judy stammered sitting up and snatching his tail out from under her, which only caused him to yelp again, though this time it sounded more surprised than pained.

"Careful! Sensitive!" he managed to gasp out and Judy let go of her grip on his tail like it was on fire, as she stammered another ' _Sorry!_ ', feeling like she was on the verge of tears. Everything seemed to be going wrong, everything she tried seemed to only be making things worse, all she wanted to do was sit and have a normal lunch with Nick and she couldn't even do that.

"Nick…" she glance over at him and then noticed his bagged lunch spilled over the ground and the tupperware of her mother's blueberry cobbler that had popped open, spilling its contents on the grass part of his pants. Nick's gaze followed hers and then his whole expression seemed to break and fall as he stared at the splattered desert.

"I…" Judy tried speaking but her voice broke at his disappointed expression as a painful lump formed and twist in her chest. Her ears dropped down and she muttered, "Sorry… I'll… I'll go get something to clean that up and then stop bothering you…" she moved to get up but was stopped when his paw seized hers.

"No!" he looked absolutely panicked for a second before looking at his paw holding tightly to hers and let go. He turned back to the lunch bag, picking up the scattered items and scooting away from the spot where the smashed cobbled had made a mess in the grass.

"See, no problem, I've got a napkin to clean it up right here." he said holding up a napkin from the lunch bag, which had a handwritten note reading, 'Enjoy your day, and don't forget that I'm taking you shopping in town after school to get you some more clothes – Mrs. H.' next to a cartoonish sketch of a smiling bunny face.

Nick blinked, seeing the note and read it before chuckling and shaking his head as he wiped at the blueberry stain on his pants, asked, "Does your mom write everyone notes or am I just special?" he shot her a quick, teasingly smug smile, before continuing to work on the stain.

Judy hesitated, still feeling an urge to simply run away from this latest disaster, but couldn't help but give a shaky laugh at his smirk.

The corner of his mouth twitch upwards in a small victorious smile and he asked, "You _sure_? I think she might like me more than you; _I_ got a smiley face on _my_ napkin after all" he finished in an overdramatically pompous manner that nearly made her snort with amusement.

"No… Nick. She does that to _everyone's_ napkins." She dug around in her bookbag, pulling out her ZPD themed lunch box and extracted a napkin from it, holding it out for Nick to see.

"You didn't even get and X's and O's," Judy said in a mimic of his teasing smug tone, " _that's_ how you know she _really_ likes you."

Nick smiled broadly at her and opened his mouth to say something back when his eyes seemed to get stuck looking at her napkin… and he blushed so hard she could see it right through his russet fur.

Judy flipped the napkin around and blanched as she read the message,

'Hope your day is going well and that you're showing Nicholas around school. Just remember, no sneaking off with him to make out and **_NO_** Hanky Panky! _Especially_ before your appointment with Dr. Rivers! -Love Mom XOXO'

There was even a little drawing of a bunny nurse waving a finger in a 'No!' gesture and a saying,

' Fight those bunny mating urges!

_First, it's just kisses,_

_then it's some paws,_

_before you know it,_

_its baby kits and mama calls!_ '

Judy looked at the note in horror, before an embarrassed, enraged, "I CAN'T BELIEVE SHE WROTE THAT' shout erupted from her. Judy looked back at Nick, who was still blushing hard and felt her own face and ears flare so hot they would have put thermite to shame.

"I'm not! She shouldn't have! I… we! AghhhhHHHHHH!" Judy grabbed her ears pulling them over her face and screamed into them.

There were a few moments of quiet after she finally stopped, before she heard Nick hesitantly ask, "Sooo… did that help?"

She peaked past her ears and paws and saw him looking up at her, a small smirk trying to break through his still blushing face.

"Surprisingly," Judy said, a little astonished at how calm she sounded, even as her ears still felt like they were two melting candle sticks, "that actually seemed to help a little."

The corner of his smirk turned up in a bit of a smile and he shrugged nonchalantly, "Well, if you want to sit down now that you're done venting, I promise I won't try to kiss you or get pawsse or anything else like that." His tail thumped on the ground next to him twice and his smirk intensified as he added, "Just no sitting on my tail, it's not a seat cushion."

Judy huffed and gave him a short heatless glare which only seemed to make his grin look somehow more self-satisfied. She huffed again, this time in defeat and carefully sat down next to him as he moved his tail out of the way.

"I just…" she started saying, still embarrassed and angry over the note, and frustrated at… well… almost everything at the moment, "I just can't believe she thinks that we're just going to run off and start making out or anything!" Judy said waving a paw in exasperation, "I mean we just met, were not going to start kissing all of a sudden out of the blue!"

There was a pause and she could almost feel Nick stiffen next to her as he hesitantly said, "umm… what about the sh-"

"That was a fluke!" Judy quickly snapped suddenly remembering this morning in the bathroom. Her ears flared again and she yanked them down against her back, avoided even looking at the fox next to her, "That doesn't count! That was just stress and… and… That Doesn't Count! … right?"

Out of the edge of her vision she saw Nick's muzzle nod quickly as he concurred, "Right! Just stress. Total fluke."

"I mean, it's not like you would even want to kiss me or anything!" Judy continued with another wild gesture.

"Um…" there was a pause and she glanced at Nick, who, as soon as he saw her looking, nodded furiously, frantically adding, "Right! Right! Just met! Friends! Fluke! Of course I would-wouldn't, would ** _n't_**!" he stressed the last syllable like his life depended on it.

Judy quickly looked away, feeling her heart suddenly pounding, "Ya… and it's not like I'm just going to kiss you just because your cute."

Another quick nod from Nick as he said, "Right! Right of course you- wait… I'm _what_?" Nick's voice sounded like it had just gotten whiplash and a little warning voice in the back of Judy's mind suddenly said in a terrified little whisper, _opps! Shouldn't have said that out loud!_

"Um…" Judy stammered, "I-I m-mean it's not like I'm just going to kiss you because you're my _friend_ ," she continued awkwardly, rushing on to try burying what she'd said with more words in hopes that Nick might forget that little slip-up, "-and the new guy in school. I mean who would do that? And okay, so maybe Beth did, but she hit it off with Gary right away so that doesn't count… and Mary, Jessy, Emma and Tom don't count either…"

 _Maybe not the best example_ , that little part in the back of her mind noted and Judy hurried on, gesturing even more franticly,

"I mean, it's like my mom thinks _just_ because we're friends and in highschool that I might try jumping you!" She glanced back at Nick in the middle of her rant and he quickly nodded, "Sure, I know that Jessica has a new boyfriend on a weekly basis and my dad has had to chased bucks out of her room… and Karli's… and Anna's, Megan's, Lucy's…" Judy stopped for a second, feeling like her argument was falling apart again and tried to rally, "But that's not the point! I'm not like that and they've never had to chase some boyfriend out of my room!"

Nick's mouth opened… and then shut and he blushed. Judy could feel a wave of heat suffusing her face too and she poked him hard in the chest.

"This morning _doesn't_ count! This whole morning was a Fluke! And you weren't chased out of my room, and you aren't my boyfriend either, only technically my _-_ " Judy snapped her mouth shut, cutting of the next word and tried to shift back to her point, " _That,_ was **_DIFFERENT_**!" she said adamantly.

Nick nodded hurriedly, saying, "Completely different, no comparison."

"Right!" Judy said poking him again, "And whatever part of the stereotype about bunnies and the jokes about us being good at math and 'multiplying', I've never really had a boyfriend or gone off on some fling with a buck, so why does she think I'm going to just go off and start…. start… kissing you?"

"Right." Nick nodded again rapidly, "you wouldn't just start kissing me… or um… Well, you wouldn't. that or anything else."

"I know!" Judy said throwing her arms up in exasperation, "And that's the worst part! She thinks that if I _kiss_ you, I might suddenly start… _s-sleeping_ with you?! Really? Like one suddenly leads to the other and I wouldn't be able to stop it?! like I'd suddenly lose control or something?!"

Another quick nod from Nick, "Right, right, of course you'd be able to control yourself."

Judy leaned back against the tree with a frustrated snarl, "That is just _so_ like my parents! I know they care but they're _always_ interfering and telling me what I should do or shouldn't do! They think they know everything, and that I don't know _anything_!" all of Judy's frustration and exasperation seemed to come together with all the long string of disasters from the last day and for once Judy decided to let it all out. It felt good to be able to just vent it all and have a friend listen, so she continued her tirade mimicking her parent's voices, " _Judy, you shouldn't do this or that, you shouldn't try being a police officer because you're a bunny and not strong enough, just settle for something else instead! Judy, you shouldn't take the internship with sheriff Prongs over the summer because you might get hurt by some predator or *gasp*_ _ **fox**_ _, Judy you shouldn't kiss some boy because you'll end up sleeping with him!_ " she took a breath before stating with as much conviction as she could, "I'll _kiss_ who I want and I'll be _what_ I want; I don't _care_ who says otherwise!"

She looked over at Nick who was actually grinning a bit at her rant now. It oddly both reassured her and peaked her ire. Nick just grinned wider and nodded again, saying, "I believe you Carrots, don't let anyone tell you want you should do."

"That's right!" Judy said puffing out her chest defiantly, her ears up, "I can be, _will_ be a cop, no matter what my parents or my _mother_ thinks! She says that I won't be able to make it through the academy but I'll prove her wrong!"

"Right, don't let her stop you." Nick said still, grinning and she narrowed her eyes at him not sure if he was teasing her or not. Her ear twitched and she pointed a finger threateningly at him and he raised his paws in a 'I give up' gesture, his amused grin now practically from ear to ear.

"I _can_ be a cop if I want! And I can kiss anyone I want, and if that's all I wanted to do that's all I _will_ do. She thinks I can't control some instinct to mate, does she?! Well I'll _show_ her!" Judy practically snarled, all her frustration and exasperation turning into determination.

"Right, of course you will," Nick said, before his nodding suddenly halted with a confused expression, "Wait, what?-" that last word cut off as Judy's pointing paw fisted, grabbing a chunk of his shirt collar and yanked him down so she could kiss him and show her parents, her _mother_ , and that stupidly grinning fox that she could, _would_ do anything she decided to.

Except that she missed and kissed his nose.


	20. Chapter 19 – Never Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Sooo… I tried convincing the captain that since we were sailing west ahead of the sun that 2 days technically hadn't already come and gone… He was apparently not impressed with my mathematical logic skills, and then pointed out that if that was technically true, that meant that my term of enlistment also only had 2 days technically pass and therefore I'd be stuck there longer… I may have called him something rude and screamed about how I'd been press ganged in the first place and didn't want to write stories about Disney characters. He just smiled evilly at that.
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: Currently in the brig and writing with paper and pencil and pencil doesn't have spellcheck. Blame the Captian.
> 
> Also, Kudos to MinscLovesBoo. He pretty much got the equation right, you can thank him for getting this today rather than at the end of the week. For all of you who just punched that equation into your calculator, it is my pride and honor as a grinchy teacher to give you all failing grades :P, PAMDirac gets a C though because of his mindbogglingly circular answer. That one and the groans of math induced pain from readers gets him a passing grade. For the rest of you lets do some remedial math, because hey, this is a story about highschool in Bunnyburrow and bunnies are good at multiplying. Take one irrational teenage bunny and one irrational teenage fox and stick them together in the natural course of events and those irrational emotions that they think they are having might actually turn out to be far more normal than they thought.

 

Judy knew that she had a bit of a reckless streak… just a tiny _itsy bitsy_ one (or so she thought) but the problem was, while she _knew_ that, _knowing_ didn't always help her stop herself from _doing_ … especially when she got riled up about something…

Like when she'd gotten in a fight with Gideon at the fair… or say decided to kiss Nick just to prove her parents wrong… and not just some peck on the lips, _nooo_ … she'd show them, she'd give him a carrot picking whopper of a kiss, a kiss that would make her mother's ears stand on end before she fainted if only she could see.

Though if Judy had spent more than half a second thinking about it, she'd probably agree that while that might have worked on her father… it wouldn't have fazed her mother at all. And if she'd spent more than a quarter second thinking about what she was about to do she might have considered that she really didn't know how to kiss to begin with, let alone kiss a fox with a muzzle so much longer than hers.

On the other hand, Jessica had kissed tons of boys, so how hard could it be?

The answer, she realized as she kissed Nick's nose, was apparently harder than she thought and she swore out loud.

That screw up almost stopped her long enough to think clearly for a second, to consider how she might feel about this whole outburst afterwards… but frustration and a need to prove herself won out over reason and anyway, it was just a kiss, what was the harm in just some stupid kiss?

So, in the most expedient method she could think of to fix the situation she reached up and grabbed his muzzle and tried again.

 _This_ time she kissed him and felt a wave of exhilaration, vindication and euphoria run through her like lightning with a mental shout of 'HA! Take that!' and then just to _really_ proved them wrong opened her mouth a bit against his while pressing harder, feeling his mouth against hers, her tongue meet his… and somewhere right around then, when she later tried to mental reconstruct what in Serendipity's name happened, was when she concluded that her not so bright plan to begin with, completely fell apart.

* * *

As Judy continued to vent about her parents and everyone's thoughts on what a proper bunny should do. Nick had to admit that he was starting to enjoy himself. In his experience, the _proper_ mammals were the ones most stuck in their ways and willing to hold onto specist bigotry that had been the bane of his life growing up in Zootopia. He could relate to Judy and how she felt about everyone saying she couldn't do this or that because she was a bunny, Karma knew he'd heard enough of that, expect that it was always because 'you're a fox'.

But more importantly it seemed to be getting Judy's mind off of the awkward tension between them and with that he could finally relax a bit. He didn't want to think about the situation they were in with the marriage contract, he certainly didn't want to think about all the strange feelings and thoughts he was having about Judy, because damnit, he _had_ _ **not**_ imprinted on her! if he had, wouldn't _he_ have been the first to know? It was all the fault of that stupid contract and some misunderstandings, and _okay_ … so maybe she was cute… for a bunny… **_not_** that he was into bunnies, No. Absolutely not. He had always been into vixens, he'd even had daydreams about some strong passionate gray furred vixen with striking eyes, so there was no doubt that he wasn't into bunnies, or so Nick reassured himself as he stuffed all those distracting thoughts away.

What was most important was that he absolutely did not want to end up eating lunch alone without Judy and he'd been terrified that his awkwardness was going to drive her away. He liked her… in a totally, _purely_ , platonic way. He wanted to hang out with her. He felt… comfortable around her… and she was spirited and energetic and fun and just unlike anyone else he'd ever meet. That and he admired her determination and strength… plus she really was quite cute when she got all fired up like she was now. Nick couldn't hold back the grin that started slipping onto his face as he watched her.

"-and I'll be _what_ I want; I don't _care_ who says otherwise!" Judy said forcefully, right at him.

Nick didn't even try holding back his grin now.

"Right, don't let her stop you." he agreed, truly enjoying how she looked like a miniaturized force of nature, daring anyone and anything to get in her way. (and who said that small and cute couldn't be strong and passionate too?) Even her scent had an air of challenge to it; it was stronger but not musky or threatening like a predator's… no… it was still more delicate than that, with an earthy sweetness that none the less shouted 'get in my way at your own peril'. It was soft, yet strong, certainly a prey mammals yet as fierce as a predator's.

Nick couldn't help but think that if a scent could be called 'cute', hers was… and some part of himself liked it… ( _a lot_ ); it was almost paradoxical, not like anything he would have expected, and… well, if he was brutally honest… attractive… ( _very_ attractive). That other traitorous part of Nick couldn't help but be pleased that amid that attractive scent where traces of his own, traces that clearly marked her as taken. Not that she was… or he had… not _really_ … and that had absolutely nothing to do with why his tail wanted to wag or why he was grinning like a fool… no that was all because the little gray thunderstorm of a bunny he was watching was just so damndably _cute_...

Judy's ears were proudly, defiantly standing straight up like they were proclaiming, "I Am Bunny, Hear Me Roar!" and the sight of her like that made Nick's grin nearly break his face. One of those ears twitched and Judy leveled her small paw at him, nearly poking him with a tiny blunt claw as if questioning the sincerity of his comment. Nick in turned, still grinning, raised both his paws as if saying, "Nope, not me, I'm _totally_ sincere.'

Judy still looked a bit dubious and stated as if daring him to contradict, (though he'd rather cheer her on than contradict her), "I _can_ be a cop if I want! And I can kiss anyone I want, and if that's all I wanted to do that's all I _will_ do. She thinks I can't control some instinct to mate, does she?! Well I'll _show_ her!"

Nick was still thinking about how he might _actually_ cheer her on without sounding sarcastic (and about how cute she was with her fur all in a fluff, like miniaturized and softened little gray vixen on the war path) and responded automatically saying, "Right, of course you will," before his brain caught up with just exactly what she had said with all the efficiency of a car hitting a wall.

"Wait, what?-"

Except that wall his brain hit was nothing compared to the next instant when he was yanked forward and any and every remaining thought in his brain wrecked in the most spectacular fashion as Judy kissed his nose.

Nick gapped while his mind stumbled around drunkenly and his heart took off like a light rocket fuse, but Judy now seeming even more frustrated quite literally growled.

"Carrot Mashing Hell! That doesn't count!"

The only thought that managed to make it through was that it had to be the prettiest cutest growl he'd ever heard. But then there was a paw firmly moving his muzzle to hers and that thought about cute growls, and pretty bunnies vanished like smoke in the wind before a storm and his world was suddenly consumed by the crashing thunderous beat of his heart and the feel and taste of _her_.

…

Nick couldn't tell if he was dreaming or not. The world seemed hazy and insubstantial like he was half way to falling asleep or halfway to waking up and his mind felt foggy like he'd been thumped a good one…

_Tha-thump_

He was under a tree, a girl straight out of his hazy dreams kissing him, her paw on his muzzle directing the kiss, leading the kiss… and he was more than willing to follow…

_Tha-thump_

The fog of Nicks mind shifted, and the feel of the paw against his cheek felt like an over enthusiastic kiss that had his tail wagging even as he spluttered, 'Hey! You can't do that! Girls have cuddies!'

' _So?_ ' came a reply, 'You're my best friend!' and there was the memory of a kiss that tasted like pilfered cookie dough…

_Tha-Thump_

The kiss under the tree was filled with the same reckless enthusiasm, but this time instead of being quick, it persisted, pressed and Nick opened up to it, responding to the vixen's advance… but she wasn't a vixen, not quite… though that didn't seem important… she was his small grey furred vixen…

_Tha-Thump_

Under a tree, similar but different, laughing as two gray furred paws finally stopped tickling him only for her to lean down close and say, 'I'll stop if you promise me a kiss!' and he gasped out 'I can't kiss you, girls have cuddies!' but the two gray paws were still there against him ready to tickle if he tried to escape… and even if she did have cuddies, he _wanted_ to kiss her…

_Tha-Thump_

The kiss changed as her head tilted just a bit fitting against Nick's mouth. The paw on his muzzle moved through his fur to meet her other paw behind his neck and pull him deeper... deeper… into the kiss…

_Tha-Thump_

Nick was under that other tree, swaying in an old tire swing, two paws pulling him into a hug, refusing to let go…

'because I'm a fox…' He mumbled, knowing that things would not work out, he was just a fox after all… and she wasn't…

'So?' she asked hugging him harder, 'I don't care what you are! I don't want anyone who isn't my best friend to marry me, and you said you're always going to be my best friend.'

Feelings welled up in him… warmth, happiness, feelings he couldn't even describe… all of them boiled over and he hugged her back fiercely; if she wanted him, then he was hers… and she was his… his small strong grey furred vixen… he held onto her, never wanting to let go...

_Tha-Thump_

Nick's paws were around her, pulling her onto his lap as she pulled him into the kiss. And something in him, something deep down in his heart gave way, flooding him with a torrent of emotion. The world in that moment seemed right and perfect all because he had _her_ … was kissed _her_ … holding _her…_

There was nothing more important in the world than _her_...

_Tha-Thump_

Nick was lost amid a raging storm of half remembered dreams that seemed to crystallize before they were swept away only to be replaced by more. Holding paws, chasing and being chased, laughing, stolen kisses and cuddies… too many for him grasp or understand, and only the fact that _she_ was always there in all of them gave his mind anything to hold onto while he felt like he was drowning amid a sea of emotion and desire.

_Tha-Thump_

Her _…_ he needed her… wanted her… held onto her with a terrified desperation for fear that she would be swept away just like everything else amid his muddled roiling mind. But she stayed, held him back and kissed him… and that was what did it. Nick broke and lost himself amid that kiss…

_Tha-Thump_

_..._

* * *

"I'm Sorry! Oh my gosh, I'm _so_ sorry!"

"It's alright, It's my fault! I-"

"No it isn't! I shouldn't have. I didn't mean too! I'm soooo sorry!"

Judy had thought before that kissing was silly (and embarrassing when she thought about herself doing it), But really, what could the harm have been in just one kiss?

Well… in retrospect, Judy would have to classify kissing as dangerous… extremely _unbelievably_ dangerous. _Particularly_ when it came to kissing one specific fox, though she didn't have any data to confirm that theory… and absolutely no interest in kissing anyone else to find out… not that she would be kissing Nick again. No, _absolutely_ not. That was far _far_ too perilous to even _think_ of… Not because of the hole in her shirt… no… it was _way_ to perilous because of the way that kiss had made her heart thrum out of control and how she'd lost all her wits when he'd kissed her back…

"-orry. Oh gods, I didn't mean to hurt you! Are you bleeding? Are you-"

"Nick! _NICK_!" a long nose prodded her where the hole in her shirt was, snuffling franticly.

"What if it _scars_?! What if-"

" ** _NICK!_** Stop _sniffing_ it! It's _Fine_! It's barely even a scratch!"

Judy had to push Nick's nose away from the crook of her neck and shoulder where he'd nipped her, to get him to stop sniffing at the small scratch from his sharp teeth, though in a way she was glad for his total panic at what had happened because it was allowing her to (mostly) ignore the large part of her that was freaking out about having just made out with Nick… (and liking it…) and probably dying from mortification over it… or _worse_ , having to admit that her mother might have been right about kissing Nick.

She couldn't fully remember what had happened after it started… except that kissing Nick had been like pure refined bliss… dangerously powerfully addictive bliss that needed to be classified as a controlled substance and kept far away from vulnerable dumb bunnies like herself.

She couldn't even remember when she'd wrapped her paws around the back of his neck because her brain had shut off by that point, and then when her mouth shifted finding the perfect angle to mesh with his… Judy had to stifle a moan at the memory… and also pushed harder on the fox muzzle still trying to snuffle at her injury to see how bad it was.

" _Nick!_ So help me, if you don't stop sniffing at it, I'll… I'll…"

 _Kiss you again?... no that's more a threat to me than to him…_ Judy thought quickly trying to come up with something to threaten the panicked fox with, _wait didn't he say earlier that he loved…_

"I… I won't share my blueberry cobbler with you!"

That seemed to work. Nick stopped, though there was such a look of pained confliction on his face that she nearly giggled.

" _Judyyy_." Nick practically whined, "What if its worse than it looks?"

" _Nickk_ ," she mimicked back, "you can't even see it under my fur!"

"Exactly!" He said starting to look panicked again, "What if your fur is hiding just how bad it is! It needs to be looked at- We need to take you to the nurse!"

" ** _NOOO!_** "

There was no way in hell that Judy was going to see the nurse because the nurse would want to know exactly what happened… and then she'd have to tell her how they'd…

Actually… what _had_ happened?

She'd half pulled herself, half been pulled into Nick's lap and she'd felt his arms around her, holding her with an almost desperate force and kissing her back with reckless abandon… and she, well some stupid ditzy part of her, had been loving it, loving the feel of his tongue against hers, getting high off the kiss and how his muzzle meshed and locked with hers and then their was that dangerous rush that ran through her as his fangs brush lightly against her mouth… And his paws, they'd way they'd held her… like he'd never wanted to let her go…

Judy shivered as and bit her lip, fighting back the wave of distracting feelings from the memory. Though that wasn't the worst (or best) part of her hazy recollection… no that had been when in the middle of the kiss, he'd gave out this low canine whine of utter longing and need that made her feel like she wanted to melt into him. And then the next thing she knew he was kissing her lips, her cheek… trailing kissing down her neck and… oh carrot sticks, had she moaned? Actually _moaned?!_ and _angled_ her neck so he could continue?! She'd never be able to look at him again. Maybe he didn't remember? That was right before he'd nipped her with a small soft bite, and everything went crazy. She shivered visibly and bit down harder on her lip so she didn't make any sound at that very clear memory of that nipping bite.

Dangerous. Nick was a fox. And her Dad had _warned_ her that foxes were dangerous, and he was absolutely 100% right… just not in the way he'd probably been trying to warn her about. The tiny cut and tear in the collar of her shirt really wasn't Nick's fault, he'd just sort of let out this soft, low growl after the last quick kiss on her neck, though it hadn't been frightening, quite the opposite in fact… and then nipped her. The feeling of it had been unlike anything she'd ever experienced, unlike anything she ever thought she might either. She'd let out a startled moaning gasp and jerked involuntarily which was what caused his teeth to cut her and her shirt… which was probably a good thing Judy thought privately to herself, because Nick had freaked out at that. She certainly hadn't had the sense of mind or will to stop _anything_ at that point. But now that she did, she promised herself that there was absolutely no way she was going to be kissing Nick again, because now she suddenly had a deep and terrible fear of what she would do to him if they did kiss like that again. And the fact that she some part of her desperately _wanted_ _to_ , scared her even more… Fudgestickles and Carrot Mash, why did her mother have to be right?

"Judy! Your shaking!" Nick nearly choked out, now well past panicked and in total freak out territory again. He grabbed her under her legs and back and jumped to his feet with her in his arms before she could do anything.

"We need to get you to the nurse! Just hang on, you'll be alright!"

"Nicholas!" Judy yelled, trying to squirm out of his arms but he held her close to his chest with a frantic desperation that forced her nose deep into his neck and shoulder.

 _Stupid fox._ _Stupid dumb fox._ _Stupid dumb (cute) fox._ Judy seethed internally, the calming musky smell of his fur and scent not helping at all as it clashed with her irritation as he started to run toward the school.

With few options available, Judy growled out, "If you take me to the nurse I'll make sure that you have to join me!" and bite down threateningly on the crook of Nick's neck.

The reaction was not what she had expected or hoped for, though it worked… sort of…

Nick yelped, his eyes seeming to blow out, though she hadn't bit him that hard. He stumbled and then tripped spectacularly over his own feet before crashing to the ground in a heap, all the while trying to curl protectively around her.

 _Stupid Stupid STUPID dumb (cute) fox,_ was the first thing that came to Judy's mind after _Owwww_.

Before the stupid fox could get any more stupid ideas, Judy squirmed out of his loosened hold.

There was a groan from Nick and she turned back to him, leveling a finger at his nose where it lay in the grass as he looked at her.

"I am **_not_** going to the nurse!" she growled at him, "I don't _need_ to go to the nurse! It's barely a _scratch!_ I'm more likely to _actually_ get injured with you trying to _take_ me to the nurse!" She stopped, took a deep breath, and tried for a more reasonable tone, " ** _I_** am going back to that tree," she pointed back to where they had been, "and am going to eat my _lunch_! You can join me or not." she said with a final huff and turned, storming away, all the while trying to desperately hold onto at least a bit of her irritation so she wouldn't think about how nice it felt for him to carry her like that… like he was prince charming sweeping her off her feet…

Judy blushed and shook her head trying to dispel the thoughts as she muttered, 'stupid fox', under her breath like a mantra that might help keep her calm and ward off unwanted thoughts about a dangerous red furred mammal that she was absolutely not going to kiss again.

* * *

A/N

**WARNING: THIS CHAPTER MAY CONTAIN EXESSIVE AMOUNTS OF (STILL T-RATED) SNOGGING.**

**Read at your own discretion. You have been warned.**

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Fox in the Hen House for some assistance with word choice in this and the previous chapter. Also DrekkDeina, Shadow, and LapisLucius42 contributed to the 'how do you spell the sound of a heartbeat discussion'.
> 
> Also, we probably also need some credits here for InHerOwnWorld, author of 'It Can't Be Helped' which is a must read, since I think she was the first to come up with the cultural trait for foxes sniffing wounds to make sure they're alright. That and I need to write faster because I hear the captain is sending GoneKrazy3000 with his TypoThumper Mark II after me and my typos again.


	21. Chapter 20 – A Memory of Paws

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: What happened you ask? Where did this ships story, pilfered from Disney clearly without their permission, go? Why has it been like freaking forever since this story has been seen or updated? Well, let's just say that I don't think the WildeHopps Navy will be letting this Grinch try to navigate again. I mean I could have sworn that my sextant kept telling me that update was right around the corner but it seems I ran the ship right into real life instead and boy was that a mess. They had to get the whole crew out to push the ship back off that sandbar.
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: I was busy trying to navigate! What, you expect me to try proofing and navigating at the same time?! Why don't you try asking me to breath and think at the same time as well!

 

"Sharla, there you are!" Bobby said and waved her over to the table he and Gareth were sitting at on the patio outside the cafeteria before looking around again.

"Have you seen Judy and the new fox around?" he asked as Sharla joined them.

She shook her head.

"Not since right after the welcome ceremony when they…" she blushed a bit thinking back to how she'd caught the fox comforting Judy, "Not since this morning."

"You know he  _has_  a name, right?" Gareth added rolling his eyes, "Isn't all this 'new fox' stuff unnecessary?"

"Absolutely not!" Bobby countered, looking appalled, "He's a new transfer and we like  _never_  get those out here! It's a time-honored tradition! What would other schools thing if we let him off so easily?" He countered, looking theatrically appalled.

"Really Bobby?" Sharla said giving the cougar a disapproving look.

"Oh fine, you spoil sports." Bobby sniffed, "Judy's boyfriend then. Or is it officially 'fiancé'?" he gave Sharla a questioning look as if expecting her to be able to tell them.

Sharla rolled her eyes, "First, Bobby, I'd be careful about saying  _any_  of those names around Judy, you know how shy she's always been about dating."

"Oh, right. Good point." Bobby said with a sheepish smile that had Gareth snorting.

"and  _second_ ," Sharla continued, "I haven't been able to track Judy down and pull any answers out of her about all the rumors. I actually was hoping to talk to her during lunch."

"Ya, we were trying to find Nick too." Bobby said, "but he's not in the cafeteria or around here, do you have any idea where he might have gotten to?"

"No… well, actually…" Sharla thought for a second before grabbing her lunchbag, and waving at the other two to do the same, "I might just know…"

…

"They're probably eating under the old tree after what happened this morning." Sharla said as they made their way to the side of the school building, "Probably wanted a break from everyone and-" Sharla stopped talking and waved the other two to be quiet too as she backed up, only peeking around the corner.

"What?" Gareth whispered ducking down so he could squeeze his head past the corner too, "Ohh…"

"Hey, let me see too!" Bobby said squeezing in and looking around the corner too, his head right above Sharla's as all three of them stared at Judy and the new fox sitting under the tree.

"Are they sharing their lunch?" Bobby whispered.

"See! I told you that Judy real  _did_  like him, that's dating cliché #12!" Gareth said in a low excited voice.

"Gareth, you've been watching to many tv dramas," Bobby said exasperatedly, "Sharla, tell him I'm right."

"Gareth, your absolutely right." Sharla said excitedly to a huff from her brother as she watched how Judy, while not directly looking at Nick, was stealing glances at the fox.

Judy reached into her lunchbox set between them and pulled out a sandwich and handed half of it to him, saying something before looking down and blushing. The fox after a hesitant second took it, then with a small smile took a bite from the sandwich half, his tail lightly thumping the ground in a happy manner by his side.

He took another bite then elbowed Judy and whispered something to her that had Judy spewing out some of the drink she'd started sipping before she'd laughed.

There was an irate shout of "Nick!" that they could here all the way by the corner of the building before Judy turned and thwacked him on his arm only for him to grin.

Sharla had to bite her lip to hold back a squeal at how  _cute_  they looked together.

"Oh my gosh! She's  _sooo_  fallen for him!" she squealed as quietly as she could and Bobby's head bumped her wool puff as he nodded above her in agreement.

"You think that Jessica was telling the truth when she said Judy snuck him into her room last night?" Gareth asked from below her as he watched with wide eyes.

"I have no idea." Sharla said holding back another excited squeal. "I mean on one hoof when it comes to Judy and dating I'd expect her to be too shy to try something like that, but on the other… well this is Judy. When has anything stopped her from doing what she wants?"

"Umm… never?" Bobby said, from above her and this time it was Gareth nodding in agreement.

The fox was talking now as they ate, gesturing and Judy was nodding along and smiling. She whispered something back to the fox almost conspiratorially and then  _giggled_.

All three of the friends looked at each other with wide eyes.

"Did Judy just-"

"-no way. I mean we just saw it, but  _Judy?_

 _"_ Wow, she must  _really_  like him-"

"Did you see the way he smiled at her too?"

"Forget the smile did you see his  _tail_?"

"You think we should leave them, we can talk to the latter."

"probably, I'd bet Judy kisses him before they finish with their lunch at this rate."

"But I want to see Judy kiss him! We can talk to them  _after_  that"

"Sharla!"

"Oh come on like you don't? We've never seen Judy fall like this for  _anyone_! Look at how happy she is!"

* * *

Judy was trying to hold back another fit of giggles.

"Nick, you are just evil! Jessica will never see that coming!" she said put her paw up to her mouth to stifle her laughter.

"I take it you like my plan?" he said with a sly smile and Judy giggled again before forcing her expression into a stern responsible visage.

"It is devious, and under-handed, and I should sooo not let you do it!" Judy said tapping him on his chest with each statement, "And it's the perfect justice for her!" she nearly howled, her stern expression falling to pieces as she laughed and giggled so hard she fell over on him.

"-oh *laugh* this is -is *giggle* going to go down *giggle* in the bunny burrows history books as the best sibling revenge  _ever_! * _Giggle_ *"

Judy wiped tears away from her eyes as she tried to get herself back under control, but every time she imagined Jessica's reaction, she had to start all over again.

"I know I'm good Carrots, but that can't be the  _best_  prank you all have ever done. That's was just the first idea that came to me."

"Well… top ten at least." Judy snickered, then laughed out loud, "Plus this is going to be Jessica  _getting_  pranked, not  _pranking_  for once!"

Judy looked back up at Nick from where she'd fallen against his side while giggling, and her heart skipped a beat mid giggle.

The way he was smiling at her was just so… so… she couldn't describe it right. It was kind and happy and caring and just warm. And the way his eyes sparkled with mischief and happiness… well it made the warmth from his smile seem to sink right into her like the sun on a pleasant summer day.

That warmth made Judy suddenly  _excruciatingly_  aware of just how close to Nick she was again. She could feel the beat of his heart and the warmth of his body through his shirt and her mind skipped back to that moment with him holding her… kissing her…

She hurriedly looked away from those green eyes as she sat back up, a sudden heat rolled through her as her giggles finally died off while she blushed hard.

Her embarrassment seemed to infect Nick and she felt him shift slightly as he turned his head away too.

Judy stole a glance at him before running a paw over her ears pulling them down behind her back nervously, not quiet known how to handle the awkward shift in the mood between them.

"So… um, your plan… you want to try it tonight, um, when we get home." Judy said and blushed as a slew of conflicting emotions roiled through her at those last couple words.

_When we get home…_

She'd said it with out thinking; it had just rolled off her tongue as easily as if she was saying the sky was blue… like the fact that she and Nick we're going to be going to the same home,  _living_  in the same home,  _together_ , was a normal indisputable fact of life…

 _Stop being a dolt. He's going to be staying with us for the rest of the year. There is no reason that he shouldn't call it home too!_  Judy berated herself as she tugged on her ear and continued to blush.

"Home…" Nick swallowed, his voice suddenly hesitant, distressed, almost afraid, and she looked over at him to see his shoulders hunched in slightly and his tail curl around himself, "right, when we get… home." There was a despondent note to that last word, like the twinging of a broken cord. A silent painful  _homesick_  note filled with loneliness that cut right to Judy's heart, and in a flash of understanding she felt like she really understood.

Hesitantly, Judy reached out and took Nick's paw.

"I… I know its not your home Nick, not really." She started, not quite sure of what to say, but needing to say something. Needing to try and sooth that pain hiding in his heart. Needing to help her friend,  _her_  fox. Well, this fox… who was  _her_  friend.

Judy gulped then continued, "but… but maybe it can be, just for a little bit?" Judy asked quietly and hoped she'd said the right thing. Hoped the little bit of comfort she could share might be enough.

Nick was silent for a few long moments, his face a blank mask showing nothing as he looked down, but his paw tightened slightly, holding onto hers.

"Judy?" Nick asked, his voice quiet but edged with all the emotions he wasn't showing.

Judy squeezed his paw lightly in response.

"Thank you."

She almost missed the words he whispered them so softly, as if that might hide the emotions they carried.

Judy glanced at her paw clasped with his between them, her small gray one clasped with his larger deep russet paw, her throat suddenly tight with too many emotions of her own. She looked away blushing hard but didn't let go.

And neither did Nick.

Judy just sat there, her heart pounding away, each beat almost painful.

She had no idea what to say now, what to do now. She was sitting under tree holding paws with Nick… who was a fox… a  _male_  fox… a male fox whom she had very confusing feelings toward.

Sure she'd kissed him earlier, twice in fact, three times if she counted his nose,  _not_  that she was counting, but that had all been in the heat of the moment. This… this on the other hand, just sitting here and holding his paw.

 _Deliberately_  holding his paw.

It was the most terrifying thing she'd ever done. And she didn't want to let go. And  _that_  terrified her. And the fact that Nick wasn't letting go terrified her. And the thought that he  _might_  let go terrified her even  _more_  than all the rest.

But he didn't.

He Just sat there. Next to her. Not saying or doing anything, and she was too scared to move or speak or do anything besides hold onto the paw desperately holding hers.

It was larger and stronger and  _sooo_  different, what with his soft yet rough pawpads against the fine fur that covered hers and his longer sharper claws compared to her short blunt ones, and yet… yet her paw fit comfortably in his.

Judy didn't know how long she just sat there quietly with Nick, neither of them looking at each other or even at their clasped paws between them. She probably would have just sat there like that for the rest of the period if the silence between them hadn't allowed the other voices to slowly filter their way into her conciseness.

'have you ever seen Judy hold a boy's paw before?'

'No. She would have told me if she had!'

'but she holds-'

'Gareth,  _that_  is not family and friends paw-holding,  _that_  is a 'I like you' paw-holding! Right Bobby?"

"Uh-huh. Like right out of the dating guides.'

'Fine. Sure. But what do you think they were talking about then?'

'Don't know, Judy's the one with good hearing not us.'

'Bobby, you're our resident dating expect. What do your shows and books say holding paws means for foxes?'

'Umm… not sure for foxes… Us felines are a lot more sensitive about personal contact though, I think most predators are compared to prey. The whole territorial instincts and all…'

'Are they just going to hold paws or are they going to kiss already?'

'shhhh! Not so loud Gareth! They'll kiss when they're ready to kiss!'

'ya, but if they're not going to kiss why are waiting here?'

'Oh my goodness! How are we related Gareth? We're waiting so we don't ruin Judy's romantic moment!'

" ** _Sharla!_** " Judy yelped so suddenly that Nick's fur bristled in alarm.

The three heads poking around the corner of the school building all pulled back suddenly and Judy, ears now standing on end and aimed right at the trio, heard the scrambling, bumping and cursing before all three of them tumbled forward into view in a heap.

'I think she heard you' mumbled Gareth from the bottom of the pile while the bobcat on the top looked up and then waved pleasantly like they'd just randomly meet on the sidewalk.

"H-hey Judy! Fancy seeing you here! And the New Fox, how have you been?" he made a grunting sound as Sharla, sandwiched between them in their disorganized heap elbowed him with her hoof.

"Offt! Sorry! I mean Judy's boyfrie-  _Offft!_ Ummm… Judy's fianc-  _OFFT!"_ the elbow that time was almost audible, and his next words had a bit of a wheeze to it, "Ummm I mean… ahhh…" he stopped and hissed quietly, " _hey what was his name again?_ "

" _Nick! Nick Wilde!_ " Gareth hissed back.

"Right! What's Up Nick, Nick Wilde?" he said with a try at sounding casual.

"Were you guys spying on us?!" Judy cut in irately before Nick could respond.

"Umm… noo _ooo_ …" Bobby said sounding uncertain of his answer, before Sharla cut him off.

"Wait Judy,  ** _was_**  there anything to be spying on?"

"NO!" Judy yelped, her ears starting to burn and she grabbed them pulling them down behind her back where they couldn't be seen, "We were just eating lunch together!"

It was only then that she noticed that she wasn't holding Nick's paw anymore, and a light painful pang shot through her heart. She couldn't remember exactly when that had happened or who had let go first.

"Well then," Sharla said grinning as she extracted herself from the pile, "How could we be spying if there was nothing to spy on?" she reached down and helped her brother up as Bobby started picking himself up.

"The three of us were hoping to have lunch with you and Nick so we could get to know him better." Sharla said beaming Judy with an excited smile that started eating past her irritation, "But… If you just want to eat alone… with  _Nick_ …" Sharla said putting her hoofs behind her back innocently and looking at Judy her eyes almost sparkling with giddy delight, "We could leave you be and talk to you later…"

"No! Wait. I ah-" Suddenly conflicted over wanting them gone, and  _not_  wanting them to go, Judy's words ground to a halt and she looked to Nick as if asking for help.

Nick's eyes were a bit wide and panicked, his ears splayed back, but his gaze darted over to the side, meeting hers and their was a brief wordless conversation

_HELP! What do I tell them?!_

_How should I know?_ Nick's eyes said as they widened just a tad more.

 _They'll think we were… were… you know! Not that we were!_ Judy pleaded her cheeks heating, and Nick's hackles rose a bit in response.

 _They'd talk wouldn't they?_ His eyes darted quickly to her friends and then back to her and then down at Judy's lunch between them.

Judy felt her nose starting to twitch in alarm.

_Of course they would! This is Highschool Nick! Everyone Talks about Everything! It would be one more nail in the coffin of our social lives!_

Nick's ears flattened and he glanced back at them and then at her, his jaw setting slightly.

_Right. That would be bad. Very bad. Follow my lead?_

Nick's paw moved slightly, brushing hers.

Her cheeks heated just a tad more and she nodded ever so slightly.

Then Nick's paw moved up to his mouth and he cough as if clearing his throat and his whole demeanor changed. His hackles dropped and the air of slight panic seemed to almost wash away as he called out,

"No, why don't you all join us, Judy was just telling me about you all. Said she wanted to introduce her friends to me." he said with a normal voice, gesturing and giving them a friendly smile before turning back to her. "Isn't that right, Carrots?"

Judy sat there for a second flabbergasted at the shift, at just how… at ease Nick seemed, like they'd just been sitting their talking normally the whole time. Then she saw his eyes, and the panic behind them gave away his act. She could see just how uneasy and nervous he was despite how he looked.

His tail flicked lightly against her, snapping her back to the present as his eyes pleaded with her, his mask seeming to crack slightly at her continued silence.

_Judy! Don't leave me hanging! Pleaseeeee!_

_Oh Right! Sorry!_  Judy's paw brushed the tip of his tail as she spoke up.

"Ya, I was… um, just telling him Sharla, how we've known each other since we were little and put together that play for Carrots Day." Judy said a little stiltedly at first then more steadily as Nick's apparent nonchalance helped to calm her, "And Nick, this is Sharla's brother Gareth and that is Bobby Catmull, the best musician in all of Bunnyborrow."

"We met yesterday." Bobby said cheerily, brushing off his knees, and smiling at Nick, "Gareth and I had a chance to introduce ourselves at the end of lunch. Hey, give me a moment to grab my lunch tray alright? I'll be right back in two shakes of a tail." And he turned, sprinting around the corner of the building.

"Well, lunch seems to be going a bit better for you today than yesterday, Nick." Gareth said walking over behind Sharla who practically skipped over to Judy and plopped down near her. He rolled his eyes at his sister and then took a seat in the grass forming an open circle before opening his bag and pulling out his lunch. "Though that might have something to do with you slugging Gideon." The sheep gave Nick a smile, "Thanks for that by the way. I don't know how many times I wished I could have done that but I'm really glad that someone finally did."

Nick scratched the back of his neck seeming both a bit uncomfortable at the reminder of the fight and slightly embarrassed at the thanks, but he gave bobby a half grin, "As much as he might deserve it, I wouldn't suggest trying it. We got in more than a little trouble for that fight."

Ya, I heard that Mr. Horton actually got mad. Like no one, and I mean  _no_  one has ever seen Mr. Horton get mad before. He's like the most chill bus driver ever; not like Mr.  _Hogstein._ " He added with a grimace.

While her brother talked with Nick, Sharla leaned over to Judy and whispered behind her hoof.

"So care to fill me in? You didn't say anything yesterday about the fact that he's staying at your place,  _and_  despite all your denials yesterday, you seem to  _like_  him."

"Of course I like him!" Judy whispered back in a low furious tone, "As a  _Friend!_ "

Sharla's eyes tracked down to Judy's side, and Judy, to her horror, realized that her paw was holding onto the tip of Nick's tail.

She immediately let go.

"Uh-huh. Okay Judy… but if you ever want to talk about it you can with me. You know that, right?"

Judy's cheeks heated up again and she looked away from Sharla.

"I know that Shar. It's just… just… things are just complicated right now, I mean what with my dad going ballistic over the contract and the greys kicking Nick out and then the…"  _marks_  she thought, trailed off, "It's complicated Shar…"

"Right, well you can tell me all about it when we can get some serious girl time away from all the boys, but for now there's one part at least that's not complicated." Sharla said in a low whisper to Judy giving her a knowing glance and Judy frowned in turn.

Sharla grinned almost bouncing on the spot as she leaned in to Judy's ear as if to make doubly sure their whispered conversation wouldn't be overheard by the others.

"It's  _obvious_  he  ** _likes_**  you!" Judy went beat red as Sharla giggled

Bobby came running back both paws holding a lunch tray and skidded to a stop before flopping down into the open part of the circle.

"What did I miss?" he asked puffing for a second.

"Well, I was just telling Nick about the clubs and sport teams since registration and tryouts start next week, and Judy and Sharla are being all secretive and girlish." Gareth said rolling his eyes and gesturing over at them where they were leaning in together and Judy was blushing hard.

"Cool, you don't happen to play an instrument, do you?" Bobby asked to Nick with a bright smile, ignoring Sharla and Judy for the second, "We could always use more mammals in the band. Especially the brass section. Tim and Tom, our Tuba players are about it. I have to jump sections and help out if we want any others, though I don't mind playing the trumpet. Problem is, we got  _crushed_  last year in regionals up against Kentwood."

"Bobby, you were  _never_  going to beat Kentwood, they had a whole brass section of  _Elephants_. They didn't even  _need_  instruments to trumpet." Gareth said in an exasperated voice but Bobby only smiled and shrugged.

"Well we weren't going to beat them with only one full size tuba and a trumpet but who knows about this year?"

"Wait," Nick interrupted, "One tuba? I though you said you had two tubist?"

There was a smatter of laughter from the group and Bobby made and exasperated noise.

" _Yes_ , we have two tubist but they can only play one tuba." Bobby shot Gareth and Sharla a look because they seemed to be on the verge of laughing again, and added," And they can play that tuba damned well too, even better than I can."

"were not laughing at them, Bobby but you have to admit its unusual and seeing it explained to someone is  _always_  funny. The look on their faces!" Gareth snickered and Sharla leaned over to Nick.

"Our tubists, Tim and Tom are squirrels," she said and even Judy giggled at the perplexed look that crossed Nick's face.

"Wait…  _How_?" Nick looked around at all of them, his expression dubious, "You all aren't pulling my tail are you? You know, prank the new guy into believing something crazy?"

"No, Nick." Judy said giggling herself but put her paw on his arm comfortingly… until she realized what she'd done and hurriedly pulled it back, her face heating a bit, "I um... we're not pulling your tail… they do play the tuba, well  _a_  tuba and they are squirrels, one just blows while the other works the valves."

"But…  _Squirrels_?" Nick asked still dubious, "I mean couldn't they use those miniaturized tubas or something?"

"Nope," Bobby said matter of factly, "Not if they want to complete with us in our division. We barely have enough mammals to support a regular band, let alone enough small mammals for the rodent scale division. Plus Tim and Tom like  _Big_  sounds, and its just not the same with those mini tubas."

"And Bobby is right, they are good at it too." Judy added, "Bobby is a wizz at almost any instrument you can name but Tim and Tom are better than he is at brass instruments, well except for the trombone. They haven't figure out a way to work the slide though they've tried. Still though, they're pretty impressive"

"Right about that!" Bobby beamed smile back in full force as he turned to Nick, "So what do you say new kid? You cool enough to join our rag tag band of the best musicians this half of Deerbrook county?"

Nick grinned but shook his head.

"Sorry, I'm not that cool. I can't even play a kazoo right." Nick said with a shrug.

"Aww man, that's a pity…" Bobby said downcast before perking up again, "But then again, there are all the new freshman starting, we might be able to convince a few of them to join. But Nick if you ever do want to learn you talk to me, I could even teach you to play a mean kazoo!" He said grinning brightly before digging into his lunch.

"He's not kidding," Judy said leaning over to Nick, "Bobby  _can_  play the meanest kazoo you'll ever hear, it's the even crazier than seeing Tim and Tom play the tuba."

"I don't think he'd have the time anyway, Bobby," Gareth said between bites of his salad he'd pulled out, "Nick said that he was on his old schools track team and they practice at the same time band does."

"Hold on!" Judy said, her ears snapping up as she stared intently at Nick and asked, "you're a  _runner_?"

"Well…" Nick said raising his paw and waffling it, "More of a sprinter really, I'm not much into running myself; I had a friend that wanted to join but wasn't sure so I helped him out and joined with him. I think we did pretty well if I do say so myself," Nick's ruff puffed out just a bit with pride, "After all the training we put in my friend broke a whole number of records, he even got the nickname 'Flash, Flash hundred yard dash' since he broke the city record for his species."

"That's awesome Nick!" Judy almost shouted, all her flustered feelings momentarily put on hold as she did some mental planning, "We could use another experienced runner on the team, we barely beat  _Podunk_  last year. Which distances were your best and what were your times?" Judy waved her paw to dismiss the question even as she asked it, and continued on excitedly, "Heck, if you trained with a superstar like that I bet you could make it straight onto the varsity team! Well, I'll go ahead and put you down for the team this year." She grinned and whooped, "We are  _sooo_  going to  **crush**   _Podunk_  this time!"

"Whoooh, Carrots!" Nick said waving both arms in front of himself, "I didn't say I was going to be doing track this year. I only really did it before to help my friend gain some confidence."

There was almost simultaneous snorts from the other mammals in their circle and after a moment Gareth spoke up.

"Nick. Judy is the team captain of the track team and their best runner, and now that she knows  _you've_  an experienced runner, there is no way she is going to just let you go, she'll work on you until you finally break and join."

"Plus," Sharla added with a grin as Nick's ears started pinning back, "Once the teachers find out you were on the track team,  _They'll_  probably 'suggest' that you join too. You don't understand the rivalry we have with Poduck. Most mammals in the school would do just about anything to beat them… so…" She trailed off leadingly and Gareth finished it for her.

"You're doomed. You should just give up now and join. It'll be less hassle that way."

* * *

"But I  _hate_  running!" Nick blurted out, only for his stomach to sink as he saw the looks on the faces of Judy's friends, all some variation of 'sure… but what does that matter' or 'yep, that's what they all say'.

Nick swallowed hard. A feeling like he was about to be hustled and wasn't sure how to dodge it cropping up in his gut.

"Carrots," he started turning to her about to explain why him joining would be a very  _very_  bad idea, when she blinsided with her smile.

"This is going to be awesome Nick! We can even practice together out on the farm! Its always more fun to work out with a friend than by yourself!

"Carrots…" Nick tried again but Judy only continued on excitedly.

"I'll show you all my favorite running trails out past the fields too. Some of them are really pretty and I've never been able to practice there with anyone else because its to far from town but you're staying with us anyway." Judy grinned at him, full of excitement in a far too bright and happy manner, and Nick felt that sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach get deeper.

"Carrots!"

"Geeze I should have known you'd done track before," Judy said with a shake of her head and ears and then looked him over admiringly, "What with your physique, I'd bet you're a an excellent athlete."

Judy's eyes seemed to linger just a tad too long on him and a slight bit of color crept onto her cheeks before she hurriedly looked away.

Nick felt like someone had reached in and grabbed hold of his lungs and squeezed all the air out of them.

Judy reached up fiddling with one of her long ears before glancing back at him, still with that too happy, too bright smile, though it was edged with a bit of nervousness.

"Carrots…" Nick said trying to think desperately of just how much he hated running and why he should tell her flat out that he did  _not_  want to join the track team, and why  _why_  had he tried to impress them with that snippet about training with Flash?

"I'm out of practice…" Nick heard himself say before he realized he'd even spoken.

Judy's smile seemed to double in intensity, blinding him with its sheer exuberance.

"Don't worry about that Nick, tryouts for track don't actually start until later in the fall. Next week is just signups, so we've got plenty of time to get you back in shape; we can train together, I'm a bit out of shape too to be honest," Judy said almost shyly as she looked at herself, "I thought my summer internship would be a little more physically demanding than it was… but no matter, We can both get ready for the track season together," she nailed him with another thousand watt smile, "It'll be fun, don't you think?"

Nick blinked trying to clear his mind from the glare that smile had caused and breath past that fist that still seemed to be constricting his lungs.

"I…" he started trying to think how he could let Judy down lightly, how he might do so with out hurting her feelings, how he might do so without making himself look less in her eyes.

"I… ah…" he need to think of something  _now_.

"sure…"

 _Wait,_  Nick's thoughts tumbled to a stop, _what did I just say?_

"Okay! How about we start training this weekend then?" Judy beamed and Nick swallowed hard, whether because of the idea of running or from how she smiled at him he wasn't sure.

"umm… okay…" Nick said the words almost coming out as a squeak.  _Darnit!_ Had he just agreed?  _Agreed_? He hadn't meant to say that! Any of that!

Nick thought frantically for a second on how to backtrack gracefully, he's always prided himself in being able to talk his way out of most things, he just needed to do that now.

"Ahhh… Carrots… one problem…" Nick said wincing, trying to come up with anything, when inspiration hit.

"Carrots. Gid trashed all my clothes, I don't have any work out clothes left." Nick said voice downcast though internally he was flooded with relief for having a legitimate excuse to dodge this.

"That's not a problem Nick, you can just pick up some when my Mom takes you shopping this afternoon, I'll make sure to tell her you need some so she doesn't forget." Judy said helpfully with one more bright enthusiastic smile that cut right through him and seemed to destroy every last bit of resistance he had.

"Umm… okay…" he said looking down. He couldn't take that smile anymore. Looking at her smile with all that excited enthusiasm felt like it was twisting his heart making each beat a tiny painful throb.

 _Gods_  how he hated running… hated it with a passion. But that smile… the thought of how that smile might turn to disappointment if he bailed now. That thought didn't cause a tiny painful throb, it caused a sharp cutting pain through his heart. He couldn't do that. Not to his friend. Not to Judy. The cutting pain vanished replaced by those dull incessant throbs with the beat of his heart. He thought to how Judy's glance had seemed to linger ever so slightly on him again and the throbs picked up speed. For just a moment he wished he had been keeping up some physical training regiment and that he was maybe just ever so slightly more in shape. Not that he was out of shape or anything, he'd always been fairly lithe but he wasn't exactly toned… and why by Karma was he thinking about this?

There was a moment of silence around the group as everyone ate and Nick just sat there feeling out of place among the small group as he struggled with thoughts and feelings. There was a popping sound of a lid being removed and Nick glanced over to see Judy holding the Tupperware of blueberry cobbler from her lunch just as the smell of the still warm desert reached his nose.

Judy took a bite, seeming to savor it and then turned to him, wordless offering the Tupperware and spoon.

Nick's paw moved out to take it and then he hesitated, looking back up at Judy who still seemed more excited and happy than he'd ever seen her before, which granted, wasn't really all that long. He felt his cheeks warm and he looked back down at the offered food and took it before his sudden inexplicable blush became visible.

His thoughts were so disordered and jumbled that the first bite of the cobbler was a startling explosion of flavor in his mouth that momentarily blew away every other thought in his mind.

"Dear Karma!" Nick blurted after a moment his eyes wide as he looked down at the tupperware and hurriedly took another large bite, "What… the heck… does you're mom… put imm this? This izz… the best blueberry… cobbler… I've ever had!" he asked while still chewing and Judy snickered, snagging the spoon out of his paw and taking a bite herself.

"Fresh picked blueberries from our farm." Judy replied with a proud grin, "That makes all the difference between a good dish and a great dish."

"I believe it." Nick mumbled and tried to snag the spoon back only for Judy to evade his efforts and snag another piece from the tupperware still in his paw.

"Oh, come on Carrots! Let me have another bite!"

"You took two, and big ones, so I get two as well!" Judy said and stuck out her tongue at him before eating the stolen piece.

Nick huffed and held out his paw expectantly and after a long moment and another snicker, Judy handed to spoon back over to him.

It was only then, as her paw touched his that he became aware of the other eyes watching them, and a low almost muffled squealing sound from Judy's friend Sharla.

Nick fumbled the spoon as Judy dropped it, her head snapping over to the black sheep.

"Shar! No!" she said her face flushing as she waved her paws, "That's not-"

"Judy, you  _never_  share your desert! You sometimes bring  _extra_  to share, but you never share  _your_  desert!" Sharla grinned and turned to Nick with a smile almost as bright as Judy's had been before, though her smile didn't send those little throbs through his heart, panic and alarm sure, but not those little throbs, " _You_  must be something special if our Judy is sharing her desert with you after only a day."

Nick's mouth flopped for a second and he glanced at Judy not sure what to say.

 _Throb…_ He quickly looked away from the blushing bunny.

"Sharla! I'm sharing because it's my fault Nick's lunch got ruined!" Judy nearly squealed.

"Oh and how did that happen?" Sharla asked sweetly and Judy glanced at Nick before blushing more.

"An  _Accident!_ " She snapped at the sheep in a tone that a said We Are Done Discussing This!

Nick looked down at the tupperware tray in his paws, ears back and not sure what to do.

"I um… didn't know… um…" Nick haltingly mumbled and then after a moment offered the tupperware back to Judy.

She huffed and crossed her arms not taking it as she shot daggers the sheep.

"I've got no problem with sharing Nick," Judy snapped, "and its my fault yours got ruined so fair is fair."

"I … um…" he still felt a bit awkward but looked down at the container unsure. The cobbler smelled absolutely delicious and he could still tastes traces of that last bite… he looked at Judy arms still crossed and refusing to take it back.

"um, okay Carrots…" he final managed to say and not sure what else to do, took a slow bite of the desert.

The bobcat leaned over to Nick and whispered quietly while Judy and Sharla seemed have their own silent conversation. Judy glared, Sharla grinned back, Judy's ears lowered and the sheep shrugged before glancing at Nick; Judy's eyes followed, stopped on him, then whipped her head back around to glare again at Sharla, and was she blushing a bit more or was that just from before?

"Judy's siblings get competitive went it comes to deserts." Bobby whispered, "and when Judy gets competitive… well, its best to be on her side."

"um-huh…mmmhh," Nick said and then swallowed, "I can see that… but why are they competitive over desert?" he asked in a low tone.

"Well first, deserts take a lot of time to make and if you haven't noticed Judy's got a  _big_  family. There's always plenty of food, but her mom only ever has so much time to make sweats and deserts. Plus Mrs. Hopps is probably the best baker in Bunnyburrow, her pies have been winning blue ribbons at the Carrots Day festival for like forever now, and she uses her deserts like a uhh… carrot and stick, if you'll pardon the pun. Get on her bad side and your desert gets revoked as punishment, but then again there's never enough for everyone to get as much as they want…" he stopped for second looking contemplative, "Though I'm pretty sure that's because if Mrs. Hopps let them, they'd only eat dessert." He shrugged. "point is, dessert in the Hopps family is a big deal and none of them go around just giving it away willy nilly, she must like you if she's willing to share it with you."

Nick looked back down at the container in his paws that was mostly empty now and had to work hard to keep any signs of his turmoil of feelings from showing on his face.

"Oh… I didn't know…" Nick mumbled, still looking at the container, "I mean I met Carrot's family yesterday, but I don't have any siblings so I never had too…" his words trailed of as an old memory he'd long forgotten surfaced.

_Sneaking into the unfamiliar kitchen trying to act like they were the ninja turtles from the tv cartoon they'd been watching…_

_Grinning so much it almost hurt while his friend giggled lightly beside him_

_Tip-toeing behind the counter and together reaching up to pull the bowl off and lower it to the ground between them._

_The wonderful taste of a pawfull of cookie dough pilfered from the giants lair._

_Muffled laughter and shared grins and a smile as warm and bright as the sun._

_The Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum from their mother's "Now where did our cookie dough go?"_

_Squealing in delight and terror as they ran for it, his paw in her gray one as they escaped through the kitchen door and down the hall, away from angry giants and the reprimanding wave of the wooden cookie spoon._

_A feeling of exhilaration and excitement and pure happiness…_

_The feeling of a slightly smaller paw in his, one so soft with only fine fur instead of rough pawpads…_

_a thought that as long as that paw held his that the world would always be right…_

_the happy, almost painfully so, throbbing_ _**thump** _ _of the beat of his heart as he squeezed her paw and she squeezed his back…_

Thud-Thump.

The painful throb was back again as Nick sat there perfectly still, container of still in his paws, and tried to breath.

"Ya, I figured," the bobcat continued apparently unaware of his momentary inattention, "Nobody has a family as big as the Hopps's, especially not predators. Takes a bit of getting used to but their all good mammals." Nick nodded unable to say anything right then and Bobby continued, a slight questioning look crossing his features. "By the way, why do you keep calling Judy, Carrots? And umm… when you said you met her family… well, are you staying with the Hopps's?" he asked before hurriedly rushing on and waving his paws in explanation, "Because you know there are a  _bunch_  of crazy rumors going around, Gid claiming you got disowned and thrown out of their home and all and I mean like Judy didn't  _really_  sneak you into her room for the night,  _did she?_ And it's not like you two tried to  _elope_  or anything!" he scoffed just a bit nervously. Then with more than a little touch of embarrassment and a glance at Judy, he subtly sniffed the air and tried to quietly whisper to Nick, "Though umm… I mean you did  ** _mark_**  each other…  _sooo…_ like are you two…" he made a vague gesture between them that could have meant anything.

Thud-Thump. Nick's heartbeat seemed to pound through him and the rising panicked feeling that had built with each question broke through his mask.

"It's not like that! I didn't mean to mark her, it just  _happened_!" He said way,  _way_  to loudly and everyone's attention focused on him making it  _so_  much worse, "It did! I- I just fell asleep and the next thing I know we're waking up and it had just… happened!"

"Wait, so you two  _were_  sleeping together?" Gareth asked sounding surprised.

"No! We were just talking and then… and then… we just fell asleep." Nick hurriedly tried to explain, the panic only growing worse.

"and  _marked_  each other?" Bobby asked sounding confused.

"YES!" Nick shouted in frustration.

Bobby still seemed like he was unsure if he believed that and Nick turned to Judy with a pleading whine.

" _Judyyyy,_ Tell them!"

Judy, looking not much better than he felt, glanced around the small group of her friends and swallowed hard. Not meaning to, Nick let out a low distressed whine and Judy glance back at him for a moment.

"Guys, l-look I know how this must all seem." She started of hesitantly not looking at any of her friends directly as she twisted her ear nervously, "but its really  _not_  how everyone thinks… I, I went to go stop my dad after he blew up over the pictures from school yesterday and," Judy started talking faster as if that might make it more believable, "then there was the whole mess at Gideons, and I was just so mad at everyone and… and when I found Nick afterwards we talked and agreed that the we should just ignore the whole stupid marriage contract between our family's set up for us as kits and then I don't know! We just fell asleep like Nick said! When Sheriff Prongs woke us up it had just sort of happened!"

"Wait, Sheriff Prongs woke you up?  _Where_  were you? I though you two slept in Your room Judy?" Sharla asked right over Gareth's, "So there  ** _is_**  a marriage contract between you two?!" and Bobby pitched in with, "What happened at  _Gideon's_?"

"No! I mean Yes! I mean," Judy stammered her voice going high as she tried to answer the onslaught of questions, " _Sharla_! That was an accident! Nick's not staying in my room! He's only staying with my family because Gid was being a Carrot picking turnip hole and our parents thought that he would be better off rooming with us! Some accident and an old marriage arrangement doesn't mean we're a couple!" Judy half shouted, "Nick and I are just friends! Right Nick?" She looked back at him and he nodded frantically.

"But you two  ** _Marked_** each other…" Bobby said still sounding slightly confused as he sniffed the air again with his nose but the weight of that single word seemed to punch Nick in the chest, "I mean you two could probably get out of the marriage arrangement if you wanted, but the scent marks… Judy, he didn't just mark you or you him, you two marked  _each_   _other_."

 _Marked each other…_  the words seemed to roll through Nick,  _Marked each other. Marked for life. Claim Mark. Marriage Mark. Mate's Mark._ The names seemed to hammer him; he'd been trying not to think about it all day, had almost gotten used to the faint linger smell of  _Judy_  that was constantly hanging around him since they'd woken up, but the names brought it back to the forefront of his awareness.  _Marked… Marked each other…_

Marking was older than marriage. Marking was primal. Emotional. Instinctual. Marking still held more importance in many mammal's minds than a piece of paper or a ring…

 _Marked_   _each other…_  the words seemed to ring in Nick's ears…

Then he realized that it wasn't the words but the school bell that was ringing, marking the end of the lunch period.

Nick looked over at Judy who looked at him with a wide eyed, panicked expression that probably wasn't too far off from how he probably looked.

" _That_  still doesn't mean were a couple!" Judy squeaked and then started stuffing everything back into her lunch box, "And we need to be getting to class! I'll see you all later!"

She was right, to a point, Nick thought. They'd marked each other, but that didn't truly make them a couple… the problem was, that to nearly everyone else, it  _would_.

Judy finished, snapping her lunch box closed, and tossed Nick his bookbag as she got up. Then before he could move, she'd grabbed his paw, pulled him to his feet and quickly dragged him along behind her away from the group as they all finally started picking up their lunches.

 _It really doesn't matter what we do… everyone will still think we're together…_  Nick thought, his ears still splayed out in alarm, his heart beat filled with a sort of dismayed terror at the thought. Marks took a long time to fade… and even after that, if they hadn't been renewed, the perception that they were together would linger, possibly for years… possibly forever…

His rapid heartbeat sounding like gavel slamming down pronouncing his doom.

 _Doomed_ ,  _Doomed, Doomed,_ came the thought with each thumping beat. He looked down seeing Judy's paw holding his, her soft grey furred palm against his rough pawpad and his heart thudded heavily again, this time with that deep throbbing emotion buried amidst the terrified  _Doomed_. A throbbing just like that from the memory. The memory that made him want to hang onto that paw with a desperate white knuckled  _need_.

 _Doomed_  thudded his heart, and his paw gripped hers back.

 _Doomed_...

Nick's breathing was labored, whether from the pace Judy was pulling him along at or something else he didn't want to think about. Instead he tried to focus his thoughts away from the feeling of his paw in hers, and the way his terrified yearning heart was beating with every second of contact between them.

Nick just held on to her paw and followed her, thoughts desperately trying to focus what class they were supposed to have after lunch.


	22. Chapter 21 - The Birds and The Bees

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Um… well… after I was so ignominiously told I was never going to be allowed to navigate again they sent me down to the supply deck to help the out with stupid menial logistics stuff… turns out that I might be even worse at dealing with schedules and calendars and making sure Fluffy stories pilfered from Disney movies gets shipped out on time then I was at navigating. I mean come on! So I missed the update schedule by a few tiny tiny days? (... or months) That's no biggie right? *Rolls eyes* You had all those Wildehopps pictures to look at on the calendar anyway, so I don't see what the big deal is, why the supply sergeant even had this one were they bunny and fox were kissing on each page and… *looks at extremely cranky looking Wildehopps shipper crew* and… if I say that this chapter ended up being Three times longer than it was supposed to be plus I'll never ever go that long between posts again, you won't feed me to the sharks? *Gives best we're all friends here Grin*
> 
> Rating Disclaimer: Yes, it is still T-rated! I just wanted to throw out a bit of a heads up if the Chapter Title didn't clue everyone in. This chapter has some discussion about um… well the birds and the bees and maybe more than a little about the bunnies and foxes too. There's nothing explicit mind you, but it's about what you would expect from that basic sex ed class (or biology?) or the embarrassing conversation parents must inevitably have with the kids when the become TEENAGERS. (probably less so than even those given how this is written). But hey, fair warning, if you still believe that babies come gift wrapped by the stork… well… ya… fair warning.
> 
> Typo Disclaimer: I was busy dealing with schedules and consulting real scientist on how biology might work and sex ed might be taught in a world full of walking talking mammals that all evolved in a coincidentally similar enough manner that their all different yet similarly anthropomorphic! I mean forget the argument about whether that means their biology is similar enough for their to be boxes full of funnies, you try going up to real scientist and ask about zootopian biology and effects on societal sexual customs and see if you can get a straight answer out them when their laugh their um… donkeys, off at you! Like I had time to get every last typo in there *Huff* (also I suggest beer, The scientists will still laugh at you, but after a few beers they'll also debate zootopia biology with as much fervor as a thesis defense)

 

 

Chapter 21 – The Birds and the Bees

Nick sat at the desk waiting for the class to start, deaf to the rest of the room as he stared at his paw…

_Throb…_

He and Judy hadn't said anything to each other after leaving her friends at the end of lunch. In fact, they had barely looked at each other let alone spoken. When they'd gotten to the class room Judy had stopped and turned to him like she was about to break the silence, then reconsidered and dashed into the room ahead of him, leaving him there, his paw that she'd been dragging him along by suddenly empty.

Empty…

Abandoned…

Alone…

_Alone…_

_Tears tracking down his cheeks as he sobbed…_

_Overwhelming hurt and betrayal as something deep inside seemed shatter and tear him apart._

_Alone, hiding behind a dark stoop on the street, that steel muzzle as far as he could throw it and yet not far enough..._

_Alone… alone for that seeming painful eternity until his parents finally found him hours later…_

_Alone…_

His paw snapped shut and Nick closed his eyes, cutting off the old memories he'd worked so hard to forget. Memories he thought he'd long since dealt with, purged from his mind yet always seemed to shadow him, creeping back into his dreams or his thoughts at inconvenient moments.

He crushed the memories before they could fully surface and only looked back at his paw when the pain inside had retreated only to be overtaken by the pain in his clenched paw as it started to throb.

He loosened his fingers staring at the marks his claws had pressed into his pawpads and sighed.

Of course those old memories would choose now to ambush him when he already felt so off balance.

His paw hurt…

Why did that bunny have to throw him so off balance?  _How_  did she throw him so off balance?! It didn't make any sense!

His paw hurt.

He wanted her soft paw in his again…

 _Throb_ …

The pain inside was different this time, nothing like what always accompanied those dark memories he tried to avoid; it was a pang, a longing, like that of something special lost, something he wanted again, something… something he couldn't quite remember.

 _Throb_ …

Nick groaned and slumped his head down onto his desk as he stared at his outstretched paw, closing and opening his fingers, his frazzled thoughts wandering.

Something like shadows of memories seemed to whisper in the back of his mind. Voices not quite heard...

' _-oh what a cute kit you have; he's only a bit older than our previous litter, why don't we let them play together…_

His mother? Her and someone else?

_The feeling of comforting paws on his shoulders, gently urging him forward…_

' _Don't be shy Nicholas, why don't you introduce yourself…'_

_Hesitation… uncertainty… an unexpected enthusiastic response… a new friend…_

It was all so hazy, like a word he knew he knew but couldn't recall.

' _but why can't we go and visit_ _ **today**_ _!'_

_A paw ruffling the fur on his head._

' _because we visited yesterday. You'll just have to wait for the weekend before you get to see…'_

The thought slipped away like smoke on the wind.

He concentrated on it but it eluded him. It was like trying to catch the wind that rustled his fur.

He stared at his empty paw and his thoughts wandered back to how Judy's paw felt in his, warm and soft and for a second he thought he saw not her paw but another, a smaller paw…

_Running behind a grey furred kit as she dragged him along by the paw…_

Judy dragging him away from lunch…

The snippet of memory that had surfaced during lunch came back again making his heart ache.

_Thud…_

But this time there was more.

_**Thud-Thump…** _

… _the happy, almost painfully so, throbbing thump of his heart as he squeezed her paw and she squeezed his back…_

_Laughing as they hid behind a couch._

_Snippets of excited playful conversation…_

' _We're going to get in trouble!'_

' _only if they find us.'_

' _What? Are we going to hide from them forever?'_

' _Why not? We've got each other!'_

_*giggle*_

_**Thud-Thump…** _

Nick stared at his empty paw, a sudden cold shiver running through him even as his heart beat faster and his chest felt warm.

_We've got each other…_

And that giggle… that giggle that sounded just like Judy's when she'd been laughing and giggling during lunch over their planned revenge against Jessica. That teasingly familiar warm happy giggle…

_**Thud-Thump…** _

Nooooo… Nick's eyes were wide as he stared at his paw. Those memories… that other kit…

Her parents, his parents had said they'd met as kits, but he hadn't ever recalled meeting her before!

Nick looked over toward were Judy was sitting and his eyes meet hers sneaking a glance back at him… her bright unforgettable lavender eyes…

Another shard of memory snapped back into place.

_laughs and giggles_

_and a promise? What promise?_

_And… no… No!_ Nick's eyes went wide in disbelief.

' _Hey! You can't do that! Girls have cuddies!'_

' _So? You're my best friend!'_

_**Thud-Thump…** _

Judy hurriedly glanced away, her cheeks pink, and he snapped his head back, nearly hyperventilating as he stared with shock at his paw still sprawled out on his desk.

_**Thud-Thump…** _

Had she kissed him?! Those fractured pieces of memory were hazy but that last part had been clearer. He'd recognized her features, even as a kit her eyes where unmistakable, and her scent… it was  _impossible_ to mistake scents. That had been  _her_  scent.  _Judy's_ scent… the scent of that other kit that had kissed him!

The same scent he could smell as he breathed too rapidly, too shallowly; the same scent stuck to his ruff where she'd  _marked_  him…

 _her_ … she'd… He'd know her… know her as a kit!? Been friends with her! To be told that… it didn't seem real… But  _that_  memory - _and she'd_ _ **kissed**_   _him_!  _And_  he'd  _liked_  it, cuddies and all!

_**Thud-Thump…** _

She'd  _kissed_  him…

Kissing her… his lips mashed to hers as her paws tugged on his shirt pulling him closer… the sweet taste of her mouth and her small tongue darting against his as he pulled her into his lap… The roaring pounding beat of his heart and that howling wanting longing  _need_. He'd  _never_ felt anything like that before. It was so far beyond boyish fancies about pretty vixens it seemed unreal. He'd wanted her, wanted to kiss her, wanted to hold her, wanted so much more than he'd ever wanted before. Hearing the soft sounds she made as they kissed smelling her scent as he'd kissed and nibbled his way from her mouth down her neck and-

_**Thud-Thump…** _

His paw under the desk was gripping hard into his shirt over his heart while the claws of his other hand dug into the top of his desk

 _Oh crap… breathe… breathe… in and out and don't let anything show… oh karma don't let any of those feelings show… keep a blank face and breathe… don't let them see they get to you… don't let them see she's getting to you… don't let her- don't let_ _**anyone…** _

What had happened in the janitors closet had been a pure accident, others might not believe that but it had been; what had happened under that tree  _wasn't_.

He'd actually been kissing, -making out with Judy… with a bunny.

With that friend that had kissed him so many years ago…

It was so much easier to simply not think about it. About how much he'd enjoyed that, either of those, about how much he wanted to do it again. To tell himself it was a fluke and shove it to the back of his mind and concentrate only on what had been happening at the present and not on  _how he'd been kissing a bunny… a doe! A girl! His Friend!_ _ **Judy**_ _!_

 _No no no no no… It's just a fluke… just teenage hormones all messed up because of our accidental marks… that's what caused it! She's nice but that's it… your friend, nothing more! I have_ _ **Not**_   _imprinted on her! I don't want anything_ _ **more**_   _from her! You have to_ _ **love**_   _someone_ _ **before**_   _you can imprint on them! I can't have just randomly imprinted on the first nice girl I met here! It doesn't work like that! That wolf deputy was wrong Wrong WRONG! I have Not Imprinted!_

_*smooch*_

' _Hey! You can't do that! Girls have cuddies!'_

' _So? You're my best friend!'_

_**Thud-Thump…** _

His claws dug dangerously hard into his shirt as his breathing rate doubled, his indifferent bored mask he was trying to hold cracking.

He'd known her as a kit… been friends with her as a kit…

 _Just stupid little kid cuddie games! just a fluke! Friends, nothing more. just a fluke… just a fluke… just a fluke…_  he kept repeating to himself as he forced his breathing to slow down while the last few students rushed into the classroom right before the bell rung.

He sat up in his seat, doing his best to look like any other normal highschool student as Mrs. Cottonwood took count instead of the unhinged panicking mess he was inside.

He must have managed at least a half decent job of it too because nobody was looking at him like he was an elephant in Little Rodentia losing it to a mouse phobia. Then again, there  _were_  a bunch of students that kept glancing his way and snickering or whispering… but he put that down to the cloud of gossip that had been looming over him since the janitor closet incident where he  _had Not_  (that time…) been making out with Judy!

_just a fluke… just a fluke… just a fluke…_

"All right everyone, settle down!" Mrs. Cottonwood called out, clapping her paws together to get everyone's attention. "Settle down. You seniors have a lot to get though in this course before the end of the year so lets get started!" the little matronly bunny said with enthusiasm that far exceeded that of her students.

Nick for his part, a student that would usually yawn his way through such a class, sat up attentively. Concentrating on boring Home Ec. stuff seemed like just the thing to distract his mind away from thoughts about how he had  _not_  imprinted on Judy, how he certainly did  _not_  feel anything more than  _normal_  friend feelings for her, how he would not let some mistaken confused feelings from an  _accident_  trick him into thinking he was in lo-

_just a fluke… just a fluke… just a fluke…_

Boring old Home Ec. class sounded like a smashing idea right now! Maybe they would start off the year with something especially good like dietary planning or household finances or better yet, how to do your  _taxes_. Taxes sounded amazing, brilliant idea! He desperately could use something mind numbing like that right now.

"As you all know," Mrs. Cottonwood continued, "Before we can get to any of the fun stuff we need to complete the schools requisite start of year sexual education lecture and course material." Nick's ears, perked and attentive, wilted, even as many of the other students in the class snickered and got more boisterous like any normal teenagers would when anything regarding  _sex_  came up. Nick, usually one to be at the front of the snickering crowd instead slumped in his seat, a feeling of dread washing over him.

"I know you all have heard most of this before during last year's course… and your sophomore and freshman year courses too… but it bears repeating. Bunnyburrow has one of the best reputations of any burrow for its sexual education and the relatively low number of, ehem…  _incidents_ , our youth has." Nick flinched as what seemed like half the class discretely glanced at him, (and the other half seemed to glance in Judy's direction).

Mrs. Cottonwood clapped her paws again sensing the classes waning attention and continued.

"Now this year, it has been decided to change the program a little. Rather than give the basic speech and then break into species specific groups the school thought it would try out a new program to go with the more modern times now that interspecies relationships are becoming more… um… commonplace…"

Nick tried not slink down in his chair as the  _whole_  class (and even Mrs. Cottonwood) glanced at him and Judy in turn. He couldn't help how his ears pinned back though, or how his breathing picked up again, each breath bringing the faint smell of Judy wafting up from his ruff to his nose.

"So we will be conducting the whole sex ed. course as one group, species specific portions and all." Mrs. Cottonwood finished and gestured to the door, "And as part of this new program Mr. Perry, our Chemistry and Biology teacher has volunteered to help me so that no one, male, female, predator or prey feels like they can't ask questions."

"Plus," the small youngish wolf who entered the room pushing a cart with an old style slide projector on it said, "Since any  _proper_  understanding of what you all are going through as you become full fledge adults includes an understanding of the biological components of sex and what is happening to your bodies, I thought as the schools resident biology teacher that I should be able to answer  _any_  questions you all might have." He said with a grin to the class, which nearly exploded with excitedly hushed conversations, like they had just been given permission to openly talk about all the things teenagers usually whispered about when adults backs were turned.

Nick for his part closed his eyes and hoped desperately that his worries about how this class was about to turn into a horrible embarrassing torture session or worse yet, a dissection of his supposed 'relationship' with Judy was just the work of his overactive imagination.

Hoped really  _really_  hard.

* * *

"Okay, so how about we get started!" Mr. Perry said jovially to the rather enthusiastic class ( _mostly_  enthusiastic at least) as he fiddled with the slide projector after plugging it in.

The device stayed stubbornly lifeless despite his efforts and he muttered to himself for a second as he flipped the on switch a few more times and then gave it a few whacks.

"Stupid piece of junk… really a slide projector? *whack* These were out dated when  _I_ was in school. *whack* I know Mr. Harris said that we are supposed to be getting new equipment next year but this is ridiculous! * _whack_ * Can't even use my laptop with this outdated junk *whack* oh there we go!"

The projector flickered to life after a second and the wolf looked over at Mrs. Cottonwood offering the older bunny the wired slide projector clicker.

"Would you like to do the honors or should I?" he asked, and the bunny shook her head taking the clicker.

"Why don't you read the script while I handle the projector. Maybe the class will pay better attention if they hear it from someone else this year and," she gave the wolf a wry smile, "I've been using this  _trusty_  piece of equipment since I was a young doe sitting through this class myself."

"Right you are!" The wolf said trading the bunny the clicker for the sheaf of papers she was holding.

"Okay now! Lets get through this scripted stuff so we can get to the real interesting material and questions you all are no doubt dying to ask." He said and cleared his throat.

"As you all are no doubt  _well_  aware of by now, being  _seniors_  and all having already experience puberty,  _or so I hope_ ," Mr. Perry adlibbed to general chuckles and guffaws from the class as he started reading melodramatically from the papers.

" _In the wonderful process of grow up and becoming adults you will start to experience_ _ **strange**_   _and_ _ **startling**_   _new changes as your bodies mature!_ "

Mrs. Cottonwood clicked through some slides that showed old cartoonish drawings as Mr. Perry read.

A young bunny suddenly finding themselves bigger with their clothes now two sizes too small.

A teenage pig alarmed at a spontaneous case of acne.

A boy billygoat who was now trying to deal with a newly sprouted beard and horns.

A slim girlish ewe who abruptly found her figure wasn't so slim any more and was looking in apprehension at her now amply rounded chest.

" _But even more alarming than these natural changes might be new unexpected urges you might find yourself feeling for those of the opposite sex as well as new 'reactions' your body might have!"_

A few more clicks and cartoonish slides. Some cheerleader bunnies giggling, their tails flicking as a buck in running shorts stretches and flexes on the track field. A timber-wolf who spots a she-wolf walking past him, her tail swishing as she goes around the corner and the wolf hurriedly slapping a paw over his mouth to stop a howl, then even more comically trying to covering up is tented pants.

" _But fear not!_ " Mr. Perry continued as the class snorted and snickered, still using a sarcastically dramatic and cheerful voice like that on old black and white newsreel announcer as he read from the papers, " _This is all a completely natural part of the circle of life! For you see,_ _ **you**_   _are simply experiencing the natural urge to find_ _ **yooooour**_   _mate!_ "

*click* a picture of cornily perfect cartoon couple holding paws and drinking from a single milkshake with heart shaped straws.

*click* another two mammals sharing spaghetti only to find they'd been eating the same noddle as it pulls them into a kiss.

" _Ahhh young_ _ **love!**_ " Mr. Perry read, rolled his eyes at the cartoonish slides garnering more snorts and sniggers from the class. Though notably not from  _all_  the class…

The new transfer student, a fox, looked rather stone faced as he stared at the pictures with an expression closer to dread than amusement, and Hopps (the  _super_  enthusiastic upbeat one) was sitting low in her seat, looking a bit flush almost like she was running a fever and being uncharacteristically quiet as she stared at the slides with a wide eyed almost alarmed attention that was far too serious for the silly old slides.

He might have shrugged the odd reactions off and chalked it up to normal temperamental teenage sullenness in reaction to all the rumors that he'd heard flying about, though his  _nose_  told him a different story…

Mr. Perry hid a small smile and continued on with his performance playing up the melodramatic silly slides of the old educational lector material to keep the rest of the classes entertained and paying attention too.

They wouldn't be the first or last teenagers in Bunnyburrow (or elsewhere for that matter) to wind up in over their heads after a fit of youthful passion. And despite their apparent confusion, uncertainty and alarm he thought those two would be fine; He didn't know the fox well but that Hopps girl had a smart head under those ears and it was apparent from the tell-tale marks he could smell that it was more than just youthful exuberance that had gotten them into their spot of trouble.

Better to find yourself thrown into a life-long commitment based on real love and affection rather than find yourself married after a fit of passion and trying to build a real connection afterwards.

Yes, they'd be fine… and maybe and extra warning about the hazards of such passion without a bit of forethought would help those two avoid any  _other_  surprises before they were quite prepared for it; maybe also help some of the other students too since more than a few of them, while not as far gone as the bunny and fox, clearly were giving off interested signals to each other, not that anyone without a  _very_  good nose and who was looking for it would pick it up on anything except at an unconscious level.

Mr. Perry, winked at the class as he continued reading.

" _But you see, there are_ _ **dangers**_   _in wait for the unprepared in this classic story of boy meets girl!_ " the wolf intoned overdramatically as Mrs. Cottonwood worked the slide projector.

A cartoonish picture of a buck and a doe meeting.

" _As you explore this strange and wonderful new world of courting to find out if_ _ **they**_   _might be your one_ _ **true**_   _life mate! You'll find yourself wanting to get closer with your new boyfriend or girlfriend and exploring new more_ _ **intimate**_   _expressions of your feelings!_ "

*click* the doe and buck boop noses.

" _Whoa! Hold on there Partner!_ " Mr. Perry commented waving dramatically at the picture, " _If you're not careful there what might start as an innocent kiss could lead to some venturing paws and before you know it those new urges will leave you two with an_ _ **urgent**_   _surprise!_ "

*click* the surprised doe and buck where now looking wide eyed at a brood of baby bunnies.

The class broke out into ruckus chortles and laughs at this though the fox and bunny both tried to glance inconspicuously at each other to only end hurriedly snap their heads back as soon as their eyes meet. The young fox's tail partially puffed as his alarmed expression became more evident and Hopps slumping further in her seat, her flush growing a bit brighter as she tried too hard to not look back at the mate she'd chosen.

Mr. Perry shook his head for a second grinning.

" _And no… this surprise is not the work of any magical Mr. Stork!_ "

*click* a picture of stork carrying a basket of baby bunnies followed up by a big x crossing it out.

" _Baby mammals are made just like they are for any other animal and its important to understand this natural process of the birds and the bees! Sex is a fundamental and_ _ **normal**_   _part of the relationship between mates and quite often courting mammals will start to explore sex and sexual activities with each other as they become closer._ "

*click* a picture of a bed with two sets of bunny ears stick out from under the large lump in the covers. The bed bobbed up and down with little heart shapes surrounding it like a very bad valentine's day picture.

There were a slew of snorts and whispered comments and more than a few pointed fingers around the class.

" _But sex isn't only a fun activity, it's how_ _ **babies**_   _are made!_ " Mr. Perry added dramatically as if every senior in that class wasn't already well aware of that fact.

*click* a picture of a not very happy looking doe, tapping her foot, arms crossed over her very pregnant belly bump, the buck looking at her sheepishly and shrugging as if he didn't know how  _that_  had happened.

There were a loud series of chortles mixed with an equal number of amused huffs that seemed to be split between the males and females in the class.

" _And all the responsibility that comes with raising a baby, or_ _ **babies**_ _, too!_ "

*click* an unprepared young doe and buck trying to change diapers and feed kits and paying bills, lots and lots and  _lots_ of bills for those diapers and food.

" _Not to mention that there are other responsibilities that are expected of two mammals when they make a baby!"_

*click* the picture of the pregnant doe and chagrined shrugging buck was back but this time there was an unhappy looking older buck behind them.

*click* an older buck holding a shotgun…

*click* and the younger buck suddenly didn't seem so confused about how the girl had gotten pregnant and was smiling (a bit worriedly) as he presented a ring to the doe on one knee.

There were more snickers and laughs at this series of slides, though they were noticeably less loud and amused and seemed to be tempered with just a touch of worry. The kind of laugh that a mammal might make when somethings funny so long as it's not happening to them.

Mr. Perry let out an amused snort as he looked over the students, about a third of which were young bunny bucks halfheartedly chuckling at the slide.

" _So unless_ _ **you**_   _are ready to start a family of your very own, you should think carefully before hopping on into bed together!_ "

*click* a buck looking contemplative at a bed with a with a doe on it smiling at him.

" _and if you are determined to do so consider using Protection!_ "

*click* a picture of the buck putting on a suit of armor that got a good natured round of laughs from the class.

" _No! Not_ _ **that**_   _type of protection! Pregnancy protection!_ "

*click* the buck now out of the armor looked relieved and sheepish as he held up a small foil square.

" _Condoms and contraceptives can greatly reduce the risk of unplanned pregnancy. Whether you are already mated and simply not yet ready for kits or if you and your boyfriend or girlfriend are sneaking out to take a 'test drive', Protection is a great way to avoid a visit by old Mr. Stork!_ "

*click* a picture of buck and doe in a convertible as the buck gives a thumbs up and they drive into the sunset.

" _But be aware that anytime you engage in sexual intercourse, you_ _ **are**_   _taking a chance._ "

*click* a sketch of a bunny pulling the handle on a casino slot machine, sending the tumbler wheels spinning.

" _Protection may work 99.9% of the time but that means that one lucky bunny is eventually going to end up winning Mr. Storks grand prize!_ "

*click* the tumblers came up with three storks and the bunny suddenly found himself buried under a pile of baby bunnies spilling from the slot machine.

" _So if you don't want to be just very sure, but_ _ **absolutely**_   _sure to avoid that cunning old bird then maybe consider finding other ways to show your love besides sexual intercourse! There are many other ways to be intimate beside sex and having sex can cause other… 'complications' as well._ "

The wolf gave the class a knowing smile.

" _In our traditional love story of boy meets girl, he brings her flowers, they hold hands, court and kiss and after a time once they are both sure in their love for each other, this courting leads to mating and marriage_."

*click* a slide with a bunny holding a sign reading 'Que Audience  _Awwwwww's_ '.

" _But the line between sex and mating can sometimes be hard to distinguish, though its results will easily be known to any mammal with a nose._ " Mr. Perry looked around with a raised eyebrow and tapped his nose meaningfully, then had to hide a grin as a number of students, the fox and Hopps foremost among them, all blushed.

" _Try as you might,_ " Mr. Perry said working hard not to smile and keep up the cheesy announcer voice, " _a_ _ **scent mark**_   _will not wash off with a simple shower or two! A mammal's mark is their greatest sign of love and commitment they can give, and to share marks is an open statement to the world of the bond between mates._ "

The bunny and the fox both left the rest of the class behind as they slunk blushing into their seats and tried not to look at each other or at him or at the slides as Mrs. Cottonwood worked the projector.

*click* marriage scene, mammals kissing,

Mr. Perry's smile broke through watching the two youths, but he kept up the voice.

" _Diamonds might last forever but a rings can be lost._ "

*click* marriage scene, mammals marking each other,

" _But Marks will stick with you wherever you go._ "

*click* The 'Que audience  _awwwwwww's_ ' slide popped up again and some of the class snickered and complied filling the room with  _awwws_ , while the two newly mated young mammals in the class did their best to hide behind their desks, the fox slunk so low in his chair he was practically flat, his head down, muzzle burying itself in his ruff before it popped up alarmed, and then hearing the  _awwws_ , tried to hide again before repeating the cycle whereas Hopps was simply slunk low in her own seat, her paws on her head holding her ears down and looking at the slides with wide, alarmed, eyes.

" _But while marks are the sign of a life mate,"_  Mr. Perry continued as the bunny and fox became more alarmed, " _more than one young mammal out courting has, in the throws of 'passion and love', let their emotions run rampant and accidently marked before meaning too._ "

There was an audible swiveling of chairs as students all around turned to look at the bunny and fox and hushed conspiratorial whispers replaced the  _awwww_ -ing. The fox let out a nearly silent mortified whimper as Hopps blushed furiously, and slunk so low her eyes were barely above her desk.

The classes' hushed whispers in turn, doubled.

The teacher shook his head slightly and hurried on hoping to get this over with and spare the two students some of their more than apparently embarrassment at being a more effective, if unintended teaching aid than the slides were.

" _And while it's shocking and awkward enough for two young mammals out for a quick romp in hay to find themselves suddenly mated for life, there is no worse shame than for a mammal who in passion marks and makes an unwanted claim. Humiliation aplenty will follow for a mammal whose mark is not returned and for their lover who has to wear a refuted mark till it finally fades._ "

*click* the slide showed two humiliated mammals standing well apart from each other as a group of bunnies with upraised eyebrows and ears whispered behind paws, pointing at them, some of them even sniffing the air as they did so.

" _Remember, it's not just_ _ **you**_ _who will know of that incident but_ _ **every**_ _mammal downwind that will be able to tell!_ " Mr. Perry looked up from the scripted notes to meet the classes gaze, a bit of his comical rendition dropping away as he tried to impart just how true that was before he continued, " _But don't let this frighten you! Courting and mating is a normal and wonderous part of growing up! But becoming an adult also means taking on the responsibilities of an adult and therefore the responsibilities for your actions."_

There was another click and the final slide came up with an image of billboard type catch phrases.

" _So don't forget to think before hopping on into that bed! Protection prevents unplanned pregnancies and_ _ **Never**_   _Mark unless you_ _ **Mean**_   _it!"_

The class was relatively quite as he finished and the wolf put down the script and turned off the old slide projector. He gave a small nod as he turned back to the contemplative room full of students as slide projector finished shutting off with a whine. As funny as he wanted to be while giving the old lecture it was good that they also took it somewhat seriously.

"Okay, so now that we have finished with the required prehistoric lector portion, why don't we move on. Mrs. Cottonwood," the wolf turned and nodded at the bunny, "it's your class, how do you want to proceed?"

The older bunny finished winding up the clickers cord and put it back on the slide projector as she looked over at the class.

"Well now," the teacher said giving the class a sly look, "I've always believed discussion works better than lecturing so why don't we go ahead and see what questions the class has before we get to the nitty gritty anatomy bitty."

There was a near explosion from the class and an avalanche of questions and conversation.

"Everyone knows marking is well,  _marking_  but is that like officially, like  _legally_  or just… you know  _marking_!"

"If protection only works like 99.9% of the time doesn't that mean that a bunny would get pregnant after like, um… only doing it like a hundred times?! Some, ehem,  _real_  bucks can go all night long so isn't that just like a few nights and then you're out of luck!?"

"Seriously Martin? I heard you couldn't go for more than a  _minute_  let alone all night! *snicker* And you need to go check your math, that's one in a thousand, not one on a hundred!"

"Shut it George! I could too!"

"Is it really one in a thousand?! I mean I know Peggy got pregnant last year but she and Thomas were stupid and didn't use protection! I thought protection was supposed to like, like,  _nearly_   _always_   _work_?!"

"Hey! My sister didn't think they had to worry about that! I mean he's a  _brush_  rabbit and we're just common  _cottontails_! How was-"

"Patty, a bunny is a bunny is a bunny! How could you sister think having unprotected sex with another bunny  _wouldn't_  lead to them having baby bunnies!"

"Well it's not like they were a bunny and a  _fox! *Huff!*_ " There was a instant of silence as all eyes in the room seemed to travel to one of two students trying to disappear in their seats and then the volume rose louder than before even as the questions and conversations became more hushed.

"Since Judy and the Transfer student…"

"Do you think they even actually  _can_?! he's a  _predator_! A  _ **Larger**_  predator!"

"Maybe she likes larger?…"

"Dumbass, bigger doesn't automatically mean better!"

"Of course bigger means be-"

"That's what she said!"

"Boys are such  _idio_ -"

"I heard predators have these weird bits on their you know whats-"

"My parents said that interspecies couples aren't right, that mating is about family and kits it doesn't make sense for two mammals to mate if they  _can't_  have kits-"

"Well it doesn't matter what your  _dad_  thinks, they marked each other! That means they must have already-"

"but he's a  _fox_! I mean so they might have done the nasty, but a bunny can't seriously have a real mate bond with a fox can they? I mean that's a bunny thing!"

"I heard foxes have some sort of love at first sight thing with the vixen they mate…"

"She's not a vixen duffas! And that makes no sense! They'd fall for the first vixen they saw-"

"ya, but  _Jude_   _the_   _Prude_  ended up in the janitors closet sucking lips with him about  _five_  seconds after meeting him-"

" _ **Whoa**_!" Mr. Perry interrupted waving his paws and trying to bring some semblance of order back to the class as it devolved into multiple individual conversations.

"Discussion doesn't mean free for all, lets keep this focused and on topic." Mrs. Cottonwood chastised, her calm voice somehow cutting through the throng as she walked down between the desk and stopped one arguing pair of students with a pinch and a tug on the ears of the two bunnies almost face to face with each other. "lets keep our seats and ask questions in a orderly manner or we can go back to raising paws if that's to much for you all."

There was a yelp from the two arguing bunnies as they flopped back in their seats and the rest of the class all but scramble to find their manners as she passed her gaze over them.

The wolf grinned as he watched the bunny effectively quell the chatter,

"As for your questions, lets see if I can answer some of what I heard. First, Yes and no. Marking is not the same as legally being married but it does hold significant legal weight. I'm not a lawyer, I'm a biologist, so if you want to know more about the particular and somewhat obscure legal standing the tradition of marking has in the court system you'll have to go dive down  _that_  rabbit hole yourself. For all of us non-lawyers though, its easiest to simply considered the act of exchanging marks as tantamount to a binding betrothal; That is pretty sure to be accepted in practically any court you care to ask."

"Marking means mating." Mrs. Cottonwood added as she made her way back up to the front of the room before grinning and adding with warning finger to the class, "And mating means marriage. And then comes kits in a baby carriage."

Mr. Perry nodded.

"No matter how you look at it Marking is a serious commitment, legally and otherwise. There is a significant difference between sex and  _mating_ , both legally and biologically. As for the questions about  _math_ , well math is important to sciences so yes, 99.9% is one in a thousand, not one in a hundred; that percentage as most of the does should know is the rate for standard contraceptives. Condoms have a slightly lower effective rate,  _and have_ _ **none**_   _what so ever if used incorrectly_." He added with a warning look around the room.

"But if you use  _both_  then odds of pregnancy decrease further. If you have trouble doing the math to find out the exact what those odds are," Mr. Perry gave them all a wolfish grin, "then I suggest you better get some math tutoring before the end of the year or you're gonna have trouble passing your finals."

There was a general laugh from the class and he went on as Mrs. Cottonwood handed him half a stack of papers and both teachers started walking up and down the desks passing out the pamphlets, "We'll go over the details, differences and effects of contraceptives, condoms, the morning after pill, and the chill pill later during the species specific portions as there are a few differences depending on your particular biology."

"Chill pill? What the heck is the  _chill_   _pill_?" one of the bunnies asked rather loudly and the fox along with some of the other predators and the one deer buck in the class all seemed to become suddenly uncomfortable in their seats. (Well… more uncomfortable in the case of the fox, Mr. Perry thought with a sympathetic glance at the student.)

"The chill pill," The wolf answered calmly, keeping his amusement and sympathy hidden, "is just a common name for a generic hormonal suppressant some mammals take if they find their having a hard time coping during their heat cycles or mating seasons." He gave the young bunny buck who asked the question a wry grin, "Bunnies don't have to deal with heat cycle and the  _extra_  pressure and urges mating season can put on a mammal but the chill pill is basically the same prescription hormonal suppressant doctors sometimes prescribe to young rabbits that, lets say, find themselves being  _too_  randy and distracted all the time."

"Oh…" The young buck, one of the particularly well known jocks and all around popular boys at the school blushed a bit.

The teacher gave the buck another wry grin then addressed the class as a whole.

"The point of this class is to have frank discussion about sex and our biologies and all that stuff that makes for the butt of every dirty joke or stereotype. As that corny scripted speech stated this  _is_  actually a natural, normal part of our lives, so it behooves us all, whether you have paws or hooves, to have an actual understanding of it based on more than rumors and gossip."

"That's absolutely right," Mrs. Cottonwood said as she continued to pass out the pamphlets on her side of the room and gave the one bunny slumped way down in a blushing heap at her desk a kindly pat on her ears as she passed, "There's nothing to be embarrassed about with sex or mating. All species have their own quirks, but when it comes down to it we all do the same basic thing. Object A goes in Object B. Some, such as bunnies and felines might be teased about their tendency to be quicker when it comes to the act of sex, but they also tend to have faster recovery times and be able to perform, if not ' _all night long'_ ," the bunny rolled her eyes and there was a general snicker from the class, "then more often than some other species. And yes, some species anatomy might be slightly different than you own, but I'm pretty sure any one of you who have discovered the internet can probably attest to the fact that even among your own species it all doesn't looks exactly the same, so don't go snickering at someone else because someone out there is sure to find your private bits just as strange or funny."

"Hey! There's more than just Object A and B on this diagram! It, like goes past  _Z!_ " one of the bunnies said with sort of betrayed horror as he examined part of the pamphlet, then nearly whimpered, "We're not gonna be like quizzed on this are we? I haaaaaate memorizing!"

"No, this pamphlet is just a general information sheet," Mrs. Cottonwood started saying, "there will be no quizzes on the particular-"

"Oh my gosh! What the heck is  _that?_ " one of the does at the front of the room squealed with the all the scandalized horrified delight that only a teenager was capable of.

"Jill take a look at Page 4! See that weirdish bit at the base?! That bit label under part K." there was a flurry as most of the other does who'd already gotten the pamphlet started furiously flipping pages.

"Ehweee!"

"What the-"

"I know!" the first girl squealed, "That  _can't_  be normal-"

* _Whack_ *

The young doe yelped and dropped her pamphlet as Mrs. Cottonwood passed back by her and delivered a smack to her upright ears.

"I'll repeat, don't go snickering at someone else because someone out there is sure to find what you have just as strange or funny." The matronly bunny said with a stern glare that quelled much of the muttering, though there were a number of poorly hidden glances toward the young tod practically cowering under his pamphlet like it could shield him from the rest of the class, only for those looks to then travel to the young doe slumped in her seat and staring with  _wide_ eyes at her own pamphlet. And then back to the tod, and then back to the bunny (whose blush was starting to run up her ears.)

"Ehem," Mr. Perry cleared his throat, and the wandering eyes snapped back to him, "While genitalia may be the staple of base humor, there really is nothing all that 'odd' or 'weird' about it. Some species, as Ms. Leaps has so kindly pointed out," Mrs. Cottonwood shot the doe another warning look and student looked properly abashed, "have slight differences in their physiology that have developed evolutionarily to increase their chance to successful mate."

"Ya but how is  _that_  supposed-" the buck shut up as Mrs. Cottonwood glanced his way and Mr. Perry continued.

"As we will go over in more detail with regards to canines, in contrast to the lapin method of 'try till you succeed' the lupin method is based more on the principles 'tie till you succeed'," There were a few muffled snickers but far more confused expressions. Mr. Perry sighed to himself but then went on talking as normally as he could, "To be blunt, when canines mate, and 'mate' not have sex is a key word here, the male canine's Bulbus Glandis swells in size and effectively 'ties' or 'locks' them together with their mate for a period of time."

The muffled snickers this time were nearly drowned out by the other noises ranging everywhere from surprise to embarrassed curiosity to barely contained revulsion and looks of horror.

"That goes  _in_ -"

"That gets  _Bigger?!_ "

"That's, that's, I don't know if that's horrible or…"

"Well… if bigger does equal better…"

"OMG, He and  _Judy-_ "

* _Whack_ *

"Lets stay on topic," Mrs. Cottonwood admonished as a buck who'd been loudly whisper to his neighbor yelped and rubbed his ears, "As for canine knotting, while some she-wolves that I have talked to seem… less than… 'enthusiastic' about the process, other she-wolves I know," the matronly bunny shot a smirking look toward the younger teacher, particularly at the gold band on his finger, "say they rather enjoy it, call it their 'mandatory cuddle time' in fact.", she looked back over the students, of which some of the does who'd been gawking in seeming horror at the pamphlet (or the fox), now seemed to be considering it, and him, (and the Hopps doe) with contemplative expressions.

The old doe smirked at the class as the young tods cheeks started burning with a blush that made it right through his red fur as he sat low in his chair seemingly intent on ignore practically everyone else, "I'll say that while some may find canine mating… 'different', I know quite a few does my age who can certainly appreciate the idea of that extra intimacy when facing the problem of a 20 second special and a roll off to the side and snore."

There were a number of appreciative 'Ohhh's from the class (notably mostly from the female half of the class whereas most of the males actually looked either chagrined or in a few cases almost jealous.) and the fox gave up any attempt at ignoring the other students. His head plopped down on his desk and he tried covering his burning face with his paws.

Most of the does who'd been looking at him immediately turned to stare at Hopps. She in turn  _Meeped_ , the rising flush racing the rest of the way up her ears as she slid all the way down to hide behind her desk… though her cherry red ears braced attentively upright against the back of her chair was like a blinking neon sign over her hiding location as the noise in the room picked up again.

" _We should ask her what it was like after class-"_

" _Do you think she knew before they slept together for the first time-_

" _That's still not right! I mean he's a_ _ **fox**_ _and she's a bunny! Its Not normal-"_

" _EHEM,_ " Mr. Perry cleared his throat rather loudly, working hard not to blush (too much) himself and wishing his wife maybe hadn't been  _so_  talkative with his co-workers… though… there could be worse rumors going around the staff than that his wife enjoyed their intimate time together…

"Ehem, yes, um, lets stay on topic…" he cleared his throat a last time and looked around the class again, "We'll get to all anatomy bits in their proper order, but first let me address that point I heard about mating not being 'right'."

He didn't look at any one student but one of the sheep in the back of the room flushed and looked down at his desk with a half stubbornly obstinate, half ashamed expression.

"Mating in its most  _archaic_  definition is the coupling between a male and a female of the same species. By that same archaic view of the world predators and prey would still be mortal enemies, males would fight to the death over prospective mates or groups of females, and females would have no choice when stronger male laid a claim on them and would effectively be forced to breed. Mating, life mating as we know it today is far from the barbaric base drives that drove us when we were more animals than mammals."

Mr. Perry made sure to look around the room and make sure all the students were paying attention.

"Those drives; the drive to have  _ **sex**_ , and the drive to reproduce and raise a family are still part of mating, but there is more to it than just that. Mating is one of the few nearly universal commonalities all mammals share. I won't go all philosophical on you all but at the base its about finding the person you love and want to spend your life with, whether they are male, female, the same species  _or_   **another**. No mammal has the right to call the bonds one mammal forms with another when they choose each other as mates 'wrong'."

"Umm… Mr. Perry…" One doe in the class hesitantly raised a paw, "While any two mammals might um… love each other, even have sex together… I was always taught mating is about family, about kits. So… two males or females, or…" the doe glanced over toward the spot where two blushing bright ears were still clearly visible above the desk, "um… two mammals of ah, different species… well, they can't have  _kits_  so how could that be a  _real_  mating? A real Marriage."

The wolf was about to answer when the doe continued on a little more confidently.

"As much as they  _might_  love each other I don't see how they  _could possibly_  be  _anything_  more than-"

One of the blushing ears twitched violently, and then the younger Hopps's head popped up above the level of her desk like a bursting blushing volcano as she leveled a paw at the other doe.

" _Don't You Go Telling Me What I_ _ **Can**_   _Or_ _ **Can't**_   _Be With Nick,_ _ **Lora Leaps**_ _!_ " The angry doe shouted, " _I Won't Let My Family Or Some Stupid Old Piece Of Paper And Certainly Not YOU Tell Me I HAVE TO Marry Him Or that I CAN'T Marry Him! I'll Be What I Carrot Picking Damned Well_ _ **WANT**_   _to Be With Nick!"_

The first bunny fluffed up indignantly and crossed her arms as she glared back, narrowing her eyes, as Hopps shouted at her, then gave a sniff.

"Sorry  _Loony Judy_ , as much as you might  _want_ , there's somethings you simply can't be no matter how much you want or how hard you try. I would think  _you_  would have learned  _that_  by now." She sniffed again before looking away from her fuming classmate, then jumped a little in her seat as a low menacing growl seemed to fill the room.

The wolf snapped his head over to we're the tod was glaring at the doe, lips a thin angry line and his chest vibrating. The wolf's paw flashed out into the young fox's view and he snapped his fingers, then gave a hard reproving glare as soon as the younger canines eyes meet his.

There was a flash of anger in the younger mammals green eyes, then a flash of confusion, followed by realization and an immediate cessation of the low warning growl, the fox's eyes nearly popping as he stared dumbly back at the teacher with a look of dawning shock and dismay.

"Are you okay there Mr. Wilde or do you need a moment outside to collect yourself?"

"I- ah- I- ah-," the fox stammered and glanced around the room as  _every_  other mammal, Mrs. Cottonwood with her raised eyebrow, Ms. Leaps with her surprised spooked expression, Ms. Hopps (He was pretty sure that it was still technically Miss, Bunnyburrow custom unlike a pack's, was to wait until the actual wedding not marks at least…) with her open mouthed look of astonishment on her still blushing face, and all the rest of the class looked back at the tod.

"I- ah- I- ah-" his eyes were getting even bigger.

"Right, why don't you take a few deep breaths while we continue.  _Now then_ ," Mr. Perry said loudly drawing the rest of the classes attention and purposefully moving away from the tod to give him space. Mrs. Cottonwood glanced at the fox and then him with a concerned look, but he simply shook his head slightly, hoping she got the message to just let the younger canine be for a bit. "once again, let's try to stay on topic!"

"And that means no childish name calling," Mrs. Cottonwood added sternly, glaring at the Leaps doe who sat back in her chair looking sulky and only mildly chastised, "And no outbursts either, no matter how justified." She gave the Hopps doe a slightly less chastising glare and the doe slumped back in her seat looking thoroughly mortified.

"If you wish to respond to another student whose ideas you think are wrong, then you can do it civil calm and reasoned manner like the adult you almost are. I expect better of you Judith." The doe slumped more, now looking thoroughly miserable too.

"And if you can't act like the adult you almost are too  _Lora_ ," she said, matronly ire edging her voice as she turned back to the first doe, who was shooting Hopps looks like this was all her fault, "then I'll treat you like the sullen kit your acting like."

The young doe made an effort to stop her moody expression and nodded half contritely before staring forward and away from Hopps.

"Good, now I think we can continue," Mrs. Cottonwood said, her voice returning to its normal pleasantness, "Regardless of a mammals individual views on mating, it does not change the simple fact that there are mammals out their that find and form their mate bonds with a mammal that would not be considered a traditionally 'normal' mate. Marriage and Mating is more than simple sex or even having kits, and while some might not approve of a particular pair, that doesn't stop them from being what they are." Mrs. Cottonwood continued to speak as she made her way back up to the front of the class, then turned to face all the students.

"Even mammals that disapprove of such non traditional pairings accept that they are still mates. They might not  _like_  it but they still accept it. Our history is replete with such examples of this, from feudal times were arranged marriages were used liberally and in many cases with little regard to species, let alone the thoughts of the mammals in question, in order to attempt to force mating and bonding and thus secure critical alliances. In other cases entire wars have been sparked by matings. The entire Trojan war for example started because Helen of Sparta, despite being betrothed to the king of one of the most formidable Pride's ended up falling in love with and mating herself to a wolf prince from one of the most prominent Packs of the time." Mrs. Cottonwood shook her head, "The bond formed between mates is something strong enough and so universally acknowledged that entire nations have forged alliances based on that relationship and in other cases kingdoms have rallied and gone to war in their defense."

"And it's not just custom or a common acceptance that makes mating bonds what they are," Mr. Perry interrupted, "Marriage is the legal structure we have formed based on this relationship between mammals, but there is a strong biological component to mating along with the psychological aspect, and by that I mean more than just the act of 'sex'." Mr. Perry added with an eyeroll as a number of the students with seeming one track minds snickered when he said 'biological component'.

"Part of the reason why sexual education is so important is that mammal's biology and psychology will naturally push them toward exploring new relationships as the grow up, which yes… can include  _sex_ ," the same students as before grinned and snickered and this time it was Mrs. Cottonwood who rolled her eyes.

"But the act of 'mating'," Mr. Perry continued, "is not as simple or arbitrary as declaring two mammals married. Many mammals refer to a bond that mates share but what is often overlooked is that this bond is not just some ephemeral connection but actually has physical, biological and psychological origins. If any of you are taking my advanced biology class this year we will actually get to talk about some of the scientific discoveries that show noticeable shifts in their biochemistry and brain patterns of mated mammals." The wolf said grinning and talking more enthusiastically, "There are whole new fields of study-"

There was a cough from the other teacher and the wolf stopped, looking a chagrined for a second.

"But without going into details," he waved his paw, "This bond is the reason for many of the idiosyncrasies of mated mammals. Why strongly mated mammals statistically have more successful marriages, why losing a mate can send a mammal into a deep, sometimes irrecoverable depression, and why a mammal once mated may have,  _ehem_ , 'performance issues' with others." The wolf said with meaningful look around at the room. One that garnered a few funny almost  _horrified_  expressions from some of the bucks, noticeable a few of the more popular bucks.

"Just consider that one more reason to think carefully and take precautions when having sex," he chuckled, "Once your mated, that's pretty much it. So make sure before you  _mark_!"

"But! But!" one of those bucks nearly stuttered, "It's not like will happen  _until_  you choose a mate right? Like so long as you're still single, even if you might like one particular doe- I mean my parents told me that it takes a while for a bunnies to become a bonded pair, even after they've marked each other! so it's not like you'd have um, 'performance'… issues…" the Buck trailed off embarrassedly as all the other students, particularly some of the does, looked his way.

"Mating is not as simple as that." Mr. Perry came to the embarrassed Buck's aid, "Mammals court to try and find out if they  _could_  be mates, and mating is more of a process and one that is bit different for everyone. Marking though," he looked around the room seriously, "When marks are exchanged; well…  _that_  is a clear sign that two mammals are no longer just 'courting'. Marks are infact closely linked to the biological and psychological aspects of mating. A mammal's Mark has noticeably difference to their normal scent, additional pheromones and scent signals and it lasts longer than trace scents too. It's the bodies way of expressing the connection felt between mammals and its why it takes more than just sex, but a real emotional connection to trigger the bodily functions that lets a mammal scent mark."

He looked around the room seriously, and was happy to see that the class seemed to be taking this seriously too. Well except for two students. There reactions were a bit… different…

"It's not the kind of thing that can be confused or faked," the wolf continued, keeping an eye on those two students, "which is part of the reason so much importance is put on marking. Once two mammals mark each other it's obvious to the pair, and to everyone else as well, how they feel towards each other and that the two of them are already well on their way to being mated pair. It's why even today marking can have more significance than engagement rings; Marriages can happen and then fall apart if the mammals don't truly mate, but marking is a clear sign of mating bond between mammals."

"Which," Mrs. Cottonwood warned, "is also why it is important not to act on pure instinct while having sex. You should make sure you understand your own feelings and your partners before making such a commitment. More than one relationship has hit the rocks because somebody jumped the gun before the other was ready  _ **or**_ , as is rather mortifying, someone instinctively tries to mark only to find out when it doesn't happen that there feelings weren't so much love but just some passion induced lust. You can be sure  _that_  is sure to shoot some holes in a potential relationship!"

The two students Mr. Perry was watching by this point looked rather alarmed, to an almost worryingly degree. He sighed. For two that had exchanged marks, and rather  _strong_  marks or so his nose was telling him… They seemed oh  _so_  confused about what they had between them.

 _Oh to be that young and innocent again,_  he snorted to himself.

"Mr. Perry! Mrs. Cottonwood!" one of the students waved a paw in the air breaking him out of his reverie and he pointed at the doe nearly bouncing in her seat.

"Yes? You have a question?"

"Um, ya… I heard, well…" she stopped and giggled, " _Everyone_  knows bunnies go through a  _proper_  courting period before we choose our mates and bond with them, but I heard that  _some_  species," the doe despite an apparent effort not to, glanced over at the fox who looked just about ready to jump and run for the door. She giggled again, "well I  _heard_  that  _some_  don't do that. That as soon as they see the mammal they want to be with, they just  _ **know…**_   _and_  that's-about-it-and-they-mark-them." She finished in a squeal of scandalized delight.

"ah…" Mr. Perry said, having an idea of what the girl was going on about, "yes, I think you are referring to  _imprinting_."

There was a sort of half yelp from the fox as he almost fell off his chair.

"It's not actually any sort of 'love at first sight'," Mr. Perry said shaking his head, both at the student who'd asked the question and at the young tod who seemed to be losing his cool… again. Though interestingly enough Hopps, her ears almost aquiver, seemed to have gone from alarmed to, well…  _slightly_  less alarmed but  _ **very**_ interested in what was being said.

"As far as I know, that type of fairytale falling in love doesn't really exist," he said with a wry grin, "Many mammals refer to the mating process as 'bonding' because after courting, the two mammals mark each other and then usually spend some time adjusting to the change in their relationship before being officially wed. It's not uncommon for this engagement period to sometimes be as long…  _or_  longer, as is the case with many bunnies…" he added, trying not to make that sound like a censure on how long (or  _short_ ) many rabbits took to court, "than the normal courting period. On the other hand some mammals, and in this case particularly canines, tend to have a very short engagement period between marking and officially wedding."

Hopps's nose started twitching and her jaw seemed to hang a bit as she alternately stared between him and her tod, her expression so muddled it looked almost blank.

"Canines, though, actually usually have a longer courting period." Mr. Perry noted, "Before imprinting we usually casually date for a while but once things start to get more serious… well, let me put it this way. For a canine, you spend a lot of time dating and wondering if they might be the one, and wondering if they're wondering about you wondering, and after you wonder a whole lot you realize that their  _still_ dating you and you start wondering if maybe that means something more and that gets you wondering about why you don't really want to stop dating them, and by then your starting to wonder if they might  _really_  be the mammal meant for you and then by the time you figure that out things have pretty well snowballed and reached a tipping point were that snowball has dropped of the side off a mountain and there's no stopping it and you realize that somewhere along all that wondering that you've already fallen so hopelessly in love with them and that you can't possibly spend your life with anyone else."

He stopped to take a breath, "You see that point right about where everything seems to start flying apart.  _That's_  imprinting."

He grinned.

The class laughed.

Hopps's nose twitched faster.

The tod whimpered.

* * *

" _ **That's**_  imprinting."

Mr. Perry grinned out over the class and Judy just sort of… stared…

_Imprinting…_

Deputy Wolften had said something about Nick imprinting,  _imprinting_   _on_   _her_ …

She could still feel how Nick's tail had been comfortable wrapped around her legs though she hadn't even realized it till the deputy had spoken.

' _But I can't have!'_

_Deputy Wolften smirking at him like he knew something the fox didn't._

Mr. Perry at the front of the class grinning like he knew some sort of little life secret.

' _Then… why is your tail wrapped around her?'_

His tail had been so warm…

Nick had seemed  _ **utterly**_  freaked out by that.

She'd just been confused and worried and embarrassed…

' _ **That's**_   _imprinting.'_

 _Breath, Breath, Breath, Breath_ , a little voice somewhere in the back of her mind kept repeating like an alarm.

Mr. Perry was still speaking, saying something else about canines, about the differences and similarities of bonding and imprinting, something about being two sides of the same coin… bonding, mating, imprinting,  _marking_ ,  **Mates…**

_Mates…_

Nope, that refused to process.

Mates required marriage which required having chosen someone which required actually having dated someone which required having actually meet someone she was even  _interested_  in dating which had  _ **never**_  happened, not once since her earliest memories she could recall, which was good because she'd been living under the impression for the last year that she might have to marry someone she didn't even know or like out of an obligation to her family which meant she'd probably never have a true mate just a marriage, except the need for that obligation didn't really apply anymore (so why shouldn't she be able to marry who  _she_ wanted too?!) but that didn't stop there from being a  _legal_ obligation of which her parents had apparently been trying to get her out of even-though-they'd-gotten-her-into-that-stupid-arranged-marriage-to-begin-with which now if looked at sideways after what had happened yesterday, was sort of irrelevant, unless you looked at it even more sideways in which case it was doubly relevant, and all because she and Nick had somehow managed to mistakenly mark each other, which should have been flatly impossible because Mr. Perry had just explained that marking was more than just rubbing against someone and she certainly didn't have those types of feelings for a friend she'd made, what…  _Twenty-six_  hours ago?! It certainly wasn't like Nick felt anything like that toward her! She certainly didn't to him!

_A random, spur of the moment kiss in the shower… The taste of surprise as her lips touched his, that sweeter flavor of his mouth on hers… Losing herself to a kiss under the tree… Tingles as he started kissing and nipping down her neck…_

_**Breath** _ _,_ _**Breath** _ _,_ _**Breath** _ _,_ _**BREATH** _

A safety fuse somewhere in her brain burnt out and with a jolt, her mind reset. Lungs started working again as her nose resumed twitching like the kerfluffle on a sugar high.

Breathing only seemed to help a little though. A familiar smell, something from long long ago, and very recent as well, wafted down from her head that made her nose give a sort of half skip and hop as the faint musky scent drew her eyes over to the corner of the room like they were magnetized.

She wasn't paying attention to whatever Mr. Perry and Mrs. Cottonwood were saying, nor the questions from students or the teachers answers. Everything seemed like a muddy confused mess, from what the mammals around her were saying down to her own thoughts and for some reason her ears felt like the time Jessica had smeared them with chili powder.

She just wanted it all to stop for a second, wanted all the confusion and mess to just go away and for the world to feel right and make sense and be comfortable again… she wished that she was back in Nick's arms as he comforted her this morning… wished that he would rub the burning sensation out of her ears… wished…

Her eyes meet two miserable haunted green orbs staring back at her with a sort of confused desperation that seemed to mirror her own internal feelings.

Time seemed to freeze and then go all wonky.

Those two bright green eyes…

Eyes she could have sworn she'd dreamed of before…

Eyes in half remembered and forgotten memory, except those eyes had been different? Or the same… just… Happier? Sadder? Full of excitement?

_A different russet furred face… a smaller yet same russet furred face, cheeks blushing bright with winter cold and the help of a mistletoe…_

_Two emerald green eyes she'd never forget, hesitant, embarrassed, happy… watching her with hopefulness she couldn't help but think was cute and charming as he brought his paws out from behind his back and offered her a clumsily wrapped Christmas present…_

_Christmas paper and blue and gold and squealing excitement and hugging and a huge kiss on his cheek… and…_

And green eyes she could never forget looking back at her in that moment (or had it been a minute?) from across the classroom.

She was breathing; how, Judy had no idea. But she was, and not even with all that much difficulty…

Those eyes… she could… could almost… could just  _barely_  remember…  _remember_ …

A snicker nearby, a snicker directed at  _her_ from nearby, shattered the calm moment of thought amid the swelter of embersment this class had been and Judy jumped in her seat as she glanced over to see Lora giving her a half hidden smug little lear as she snickered again in a decidedly unfriendly way.

Judy's ears started to burn again and she snapped them down along her back and looked away from the other doe, then to late realized she'd looked back toward  _Nick_.

She started to panic, then calmed as this time she didn't get sucked into those unforgettable eyes because this time those eyes weren't looking at her, but were looking past her with a bit of hardness she hadn't seen before as Lora abruptly stopped her snickering.

Judy flushed, even as Nick seemed to realize what he'd been doing and Judy couldn't help but wonder why exactly he had done that… or growled earlier because it  _Certainly_  wasn't like  _she_ needed  _him_  to fight her battles for her! And…

Sharla had said he'd stood up for her yesterday in the cafeteria…

and he'd gotten in a fight with Gideon this morning on the bus!

Judy flushed, her thoughts running away from her.

Stupid dumb fox! He shouldn't have tried protecting her, she didn't need protection! She didn't want him to protect her like he was some… some fairy tale...

She flushed more even as the very un-knightly fox got a panicked look to his expression like he'd just realized he'd swallowed something wrong and glanced back toward the front of the room like he hadn't just been glaring across the room; all the while, Judy silently argued with herself if that had been normal 'just friends' type behavior?

_Was it normal for friends to do that?_

_Would she have tried protecting Nick?_

Well  _duuuh!_  Of  _course_  she would have! He was  _her_  friend! Of course she-

"-as for the question of kits, now that is a rather interesting topic,  _particularly_ for a biologist. As for what's most pertinent to that question, the simple answer is that any mated couple could adopt. Many normal couples that have trouble conceiving simply do that too, but most mammals assume you need to be the same species to be able to have kits, while in reality the likelihood is actually question of how much two different species have drifted from the shared genotype that all mammals evolved from that makes us all commonly sentient and bipedal and-"

"Ehem."

"-which… you can learn all about if you are taking my advanced biology class this year. Mammalian evolution is far more closely intertwined that that of other animals in the animal kingdom, just like how we all live together in one intertwined society, so to put it simply…  _Don't_ assume you don't need to use protection just because you are not the same species. Even if you are  _significantly_  different species. And if you think I'm kidding about the possibilities, well then I'm a decent living example. Most people see me and assume I'm just a small wolf when in fact I'm actually half coyote. And when speaking of reproductive possibilities between different species, that is not even a stretch. I haven't heard of any Ungulates and digiti/plantigrade crosses but the world has a number of very interesting mammals out there, some with very unique lineages. It's surprising how sometimes two species that you think are  _very_  different are actually genetically far more compatible than you could have imagined. I've even heard of-"

" _Ehem._ "

"ah... right, that's a little too in depth for  _this_  class."

Judy didn't know exactly when her attention had shifted from her own thoughts back to what their science teacher had been talking about in the class but she found herself staring at the small wolf… or half wolf she guess… while her mind tried to catch back up to what had being talked about.

"So Mr. Perry, say like, um,  _hypothetical_  speaking," One student behind her asked with over eagerness that had Judy's ears twitching in alarm, "could a bunny and a  _fox_  have kits?"

The classroom went almost entirely silent.

Judy froze, the  _feeling_  of so much sudden focus, as what seemed like every mammal trained their attention on her, stirred up some sort of primordial fear response.

Her nose quivered.

Mr. Perry coughed.

Her foot twitched and she felt an urge to bolt away in some instinctual fight or flight response.

"Ahh… well… umm…" the teacher glanced over to the side of the room and out of the corner of her eye she saw a russet red form slump down at his desk, ears going completely flat against his head, "I'm not exactly a specialist in the field, but hypothetically…" the teacher's eyes glanced her way for just a fraction of a second. A fraction of a second in which she saw a bit of embarrassment he had not previous had discussing any of these  _incredibly_  embarrassing topics… "Hypothetically…"

Judy caved at that looked.

That embarrassed,  _my student might be pregnant and I have to talk about it look…_

In that moment, it was too much and she learned that what she had been taught about primitive survival instincts was both right and wrong.

That fight or flight instinct was certainly real. Except she didn't quite fight or flee.

She flushed. Flushed like she never had in her life before. Her entire world seemed to be consumed by that raging, burning, all consuming flush before it came crashing down on her.

…

It might not have been exactly a normal survival instinct, but as an instinctual defense mechanism it seemed to do the trick because Judy couldn't really remember anything from that point until the bell rang announcing the end of class.

It was only as the other students passed her seat heading for the door, most of them chatting and laughing with each other, some in hushed tones and others rather boisterously, that Judy came back to herself with a start.

She spent a second blinking stupidly looking around the room, her cheeks and ears still seeming to radiate heat. One of her classmates passing her, giggled, giving her a sidways glance that jolted Judy from her seat. She almost bolted for the door, but then stopped and hurriedly collecting all the items on her desk and grabbed her bookbag. She'd already made that particular mistake once today.

 _Sheesh_ , if she went running out of the room and Nick had to bring her all her stuff again…

Her flush reignited.

Well at least she hadn't been  _doodling_  this time!

Her flush worsened.

She slung her backpack over her shoulders and with head and ears down to avoid attention tried to make her own way out of the classroom in something that resembled a normal pace instead of a run.

She was  _almost_  out the door when for some reason she looked up.

Nick was still sitting, slumped at his desk near the door, ears pinned back.

His nose twitched, then his head came up a bit and their eyes met.

"I- um…"

What the heck was she supposed to say after  _that_  torture session of a class?!

"um…"

Judy looked down, uncertain of what to say or do and noticed her notebook and pen and the pamphlet she was clutching almost like a protective shield against her chest… particularly that pamphlet, which in her hurry she just snatched and hadn't closed… the pamphlet that was open to the page with all the diagrams, her paw clutching it to her chest  _not_  quite covering up one that's title read  _Example Canis, Lupine, Vulpine_.

She meeped, dropping everything she was holding.

Then yelped as her notebook hit her foot.

Embarrassed now for a number reasons, not the  _least_ of which was that she was making herself look like an utter  _klutz_  right in front of Nick, Judy dropped to the ground to collect her things. On the one bright side, this allowed her to avoid looking at him and hide her cheeks which she was sure were probably as red as his fur. Plus maybe her klutzish-ness had kept him from seeing  _that_. She snatched the Sex Ed pamphlet first closing it so that only the bland picturless cover was showing and then grabbed her notebook and used that to cover it just for good measure before she started looking for her pen. She thought it had rolled…

Nick's paw reached over and grabbed her favorite carrot shaped pen out from under his desk, then he stood back up and held it out to her not quite looking her in the eyes, the fur over his cheeks looking a bit brighter than its surroundings.

Judy's breath caught…

_Smaller deep russet paws holding out a gift…_

Nick's paw, that same deep dark color holding out her pen.

_That hesitant almost shy and oh so cute look on her friends slightly blushing face._

Judy's heart hammered and she almost jumped, her nose twitching like mad, at the sensation of her paw brushing his as her she took the pen back, her hand operating on pure reflex.

"I- um… thanks…" she barely managed, quickly retracting her hand, pen in paw, her fingers seemed to almost tingle.

Nick glanced at her for just a second before looking away again. He gave a small almost imperceptible nod as the insides of his ears, not quite pinned back anymore, turned a brighter pink.

Judy's heart hammered louder in her own ears and a single thought crept out from somewhere in her mind as she watched Nick.

_Cute…_

Judy's nose twitched a few times in rapid succession, her eyes going wide as she tried to figure out were  _that_ cabbage in the carrot field thought had sprung from.

_Cute?! I- That! He's not! I don't think-_

Her fingers were still tingling and for some reason, probably the rapid twitching of her nose, Nick's musky scent seemed stronger. Stronger than his usual scent, stronger than the ever present reminder from his mark, strong and comforting and…

_Thud-Thump…_

"I- um- class- next, thank you for, um, ya… I'll, ah- see you after school…" She blurted out her chest feeling a bit sore under the unrelenting pounding of her heart. Then bolted. Well actually, for the most inexplicable reason, she started to move as if to hop up and kiss his cheek but caught herself before she could do such and insanely stupid - _he'd only picked up her pen for Carrots sake!-_  action and twisted the hop into a turn and all but jumped out into the hallway.

She turned and dodger past a few students in the busy corridor, her heart still seeming completely out of control as she fled from Nick's view, her chest starting to feel tight.

_Thud-Thump, Thud-Thump, Thud-Thump,_

She wasn't making quick enough progress with all the other students jostling every which way as they went about to their own classes so after only a few steps she jumped over to a gap between the door propped open against the wall and some of the wall lockers further down.

It wasn't very much room, but she wasn't all that big and it gave her a small space out of most of the traffic (and where Nick wouldn't see her when he left the room) were she could try and regain some control of herself as her whole body seemed to go out of whack.

_Thud-Thump, Thud-Thump, Thud-Thump,_

She leaned her back against the wall, still clutching her notebook to her chest with one paw, her other holding her pen and worked to slow her breathing.

It was just a stupid pen, okay her favorite pen, but it was just a simple plastic carrot shaped pen! A gag gift she'd gotten for Christmas last year!

And that memory… she was pretty sure that was a memory… it was a bit hazy but she could recall it better now. A hesitant blushing face, outstretched paws… a… Christmas gift? Was that why she was suddenly so off her game, some long ago memory of a gift because Nick had helped her pick up her stuff and handed her that pen?

Those green eyes…

That kit… that… that had been  _Nick_? It must have been… but why hadn't she ever remembered that before, why was she remembering it  _now_?

Her breathing slowed a little as she tried to think back on the foggy memory, the pounding beat of her heart in her ears lessening then-

"Wild, hold up a second. And it is Wild right, I didn't get the name wrong?"

That was Mr. Perry's voice.

Judy glanced past her hiding spot and saw Mrs. Cottonwood pushing the cart with the slide projector out of the room and down the hall but didn't see any other students leaving the room. Had they all gone already?

Nick made a short response and the teacher chuckled.

"Wilde with an 'e', eh? I like it, it's a good family name, nice and traditional. But hey, I just wanted to introduce myself and talk to you for a moment without everyone else listening in; I can understand how moving to a place like Bunnyburrow can be a bit… jarring… since we're more like a one percent part of the population instead of even ten."

"Ya… well it wasn't to much of a surprise at least," Judy heard Nick reply with a sort of halfhearted cheeriness, "The name sort of tipped me off…"

The thought occurred to Judy that this would be a prime time to leave without the chance of Nick looking at her and making her world go inside out and sideways. She needed to get a bit of distance between her and him so she could get a better handle on… on… whatever that had been. Certainly a little bit of time to recollect herself.

"It's actually not that bad once you get to know everyone in town. It might be hard to believe but the prejudice against outsiders is far worse than prejudice against predators here. Sort of like pack mentality. Once your part of the burrow I think you'll find the town rather welcoming."

Nick mumbled some stuff about 'guess so' and some families being nicer than his relatives, or at least much more welcoming than his cousin, and Judy's lip twitched up in a smile.

Somehow the idea that her families welcome, as rough as it might have been with Pop pop and the kerflufflanche and all the rest, that it had made Nick feel welcomed made her feel a bit better; a spark of pride in her family along with a warmth in her heart that made the string of disasters she'd been having seem just a little less bad.

_Forget what everyone else thinks or says, He's my friend and he's welcome at my home. It's going to be like a sleepover with Sharla but all year long. How awesome is that?_

The thought really did make her feel better, calmer too. A bit back to her normal upbeat self and the twitch of her lips turned into a small smile as she clutched her notebook to her chest.

"Well that's good to hear," Mr. Perry said sounding pleased, but then his voice took on a bit of a concerned tone, "Even so, as welcoming as the town might be, well… there's just somethings they're still not going to get about  _predators_ , let alone canines in specific. And since there are no other canines on the school staff I just wanted to make sure you know can talk to me if you ever feel the need to talk to someone that might understand what your going through." The teachers voice gained a wry edge, "I certainly remember what it was like when I realized I'd imprinted too."

Judy's ears twitched as Nick made a startled sort of yelp, then started talking fast.

"No, I- that's not what happened- Judy and I- It was an accident! I  _haven't_ imprinted on her!"

There was a pause and Judy held her breath her, staying very still with her back and ears up against the wall as students scurried by her in the hallway.

"So… you don't think you've imprinted?" Mr. Perry asked slowly, his voice while obviously doubtful, not flatly rejecting what Nick said either.

" _NO!_ "

"Hummm…" There was another pause, "Well, I'm a science teacher not a doctor, so who am I to say whether you have or haven't…"

There was an audible relieved sigh from Nick but then the teacher continued.

"But as a science teacher, I tend to look at things from a logical analytical perspective, and while it might not be the case… you do realize your showing all the signs, right?"

"I- look I know I marked her, but that really was a mistake! I had a really stressful day and then when Judy found me- I… we fell asleep! It was cold so I was holding her and- and then I had a dream-" Nick seemed to choke up for a second, before nearly squeaking, " _look it just happened by_ _ **mistake**_ _! I haven't imprinted!_ "

"Okay, okay, I get that. You didn't mark her on purpose." The wolf said in a calming manner, "I can understand that. It happens… sometimes. But…  _well_ … your marks aren't actually what I was talking about…"

This time the pause was longer.

"You… do… realize what you were doing in class right?" Mr. Perry asked slowly, "when your mat- umm… Ms. Hopps and that other doe started arguing? When you started to  _growl_?"

"I… I… I just don't like to see people bullied! I'm sorry, I know I was out of line! I- I-"

"No, no, it's fine. You recognized what you were doing and stopped, but it is why  _I'm_  talking to you. Most prey… well, they might not really understand. But… growling like that…"

"I didn't  _mean_  too! I don't go around just growling like that all the time! It won't happen again!"

"Even if that doe were to pick a fight with Hopps again?"

"I… I… wouldn't growl… again." Nick sounded almost… uncertain, then mumbled, "I can control myself. I'm not some  _savage_  mammal."

"You feel  _protective_  of her." It wasn't a question.

It was a statement. And something about the way the teacher had said it made it seem like there was more to it than Judy understood.

Nick started to say something but stopped. Tried again and stopped, and Judy felt like she was missing something important, some sort of sub context that her ears weren't picking up, but she was too frozen in her spot to dare peak back into the room.

"yes…" Nick finally spoke, his voice was low… hoarse, almost grudging.

"you marked her without meaning too… you're  _protective_  of her, you like her scent-"

" _I was_ _ **not**_   _sniffing her!_ "

"Whoa- I didn't say you were!"

Judy flushed a bit as Nick sounded confused, like he'd been caught in a verbal trap and didn't quite comprehend how.

"But- then-"

"How could I tell?" there was a short kindly laugh, "Kid you were trying  _way_  too hard  _not_  to smell her scent when you gave her her pen back."

"I… I… I…"

This time instead of chuckling the wolf gave a sigh.

"Alright. I just wanted to make sure you knew there was another canine around you could talk to if you wanted to, didn't mean to ruffled your fur. We need to get moving to or we both are gonna be late for the next period."

There were the sounds of hurriedly grabbed books and paws headed for the door and-

"Wilde, I've gotta ask…" the hurried footsteps slowed toward a stop.

"Do you love her?"

Judy froze stock still against the wall, not even her nose or ears twitching, as Nick squeaked and there was the sound of slipping claws on the tile floor followed by a thump and a yelp.

"OWW!-What?!- _Why-would-you-think-that?!-I'm-I…NO!_ -I-I-I-just-like-her, _I-mean-like-her-as-a-friend!_ Freind-I-just-meet- _ **yesterday**_. _I'm-NOT-in-love-with-her!_ There's-no-way-I- _ **could**_ -love-her!-I-You-said-it-yourself!-There-is-no-fairytale- _falling-in-love_ -at-first-sight!-I…" The flood of panic laden words came to a halt as Nick seemed to run out of air and and gasped on a breath even as Judy's hearing suddenly became a bit muffled by her suddenly pounding heart.

 _No way he could lover her…_ the beat of her heart almost hurt.

 _But he sounded so… so…_ the next beat felt almost hopeful.

 _He Liked her-_ Her heart did something strange, its beat inconsistent and jittery.

 _-As a friend._  Her pounding heart returned to normal and her thoughts seemed to split for a second, part of her wondering if she should go see the school nurse. A heart beat like that couldn't be normal, wasn't that symptoms of arrhythmia or something?

_A Friend…_

_Doctors appointment after school,_

_That was good, he was her friend, she wanted him to be her friend,_ _ **just**_   _her friend! It wasn't like… like…_

_No need to see the nurse, she could just ask the doctor then. She need to make sure there was nothing wrong with her if she was going to qualify medically for the academy…_

"Whoa, easy there, that was quite the fall," Mr. Perry's calming voice cut through her rapid thoughts.

"I-no, I'm fine thanks… I just… it's not-"

"You haven't fallen for her, your just falling down. Got it." Mr. Perry said with a smile in his voice, "A simple no would have sufficed."

"I'm  _not_ … wait. You believe me?" Nick sounded confused again.

"Sure, you said your not in love with Ms. Hopps. I'm not going to question what you think you feel; You've no reason to lie to me so I believe that's exactly how you feel you feel."

"I… ah… thanks?" Nick seemed a bit befuddled like he wasn't thinking to clearly after that fall.

"Sure, no problem kid."

Judy held her breath as the sounds of footsteps neared and she caught a glimpse of Nick entering the hallway from around the edge of the door.

"One last question Wilde," The teachers voice stopped the fox and he turned around looking a back, his expression wary and on guard.

"You said you don't love her now… but… do you think she's the type of mammal you  _might_  fall for someday?"

Nick opened his mouth… and nothing came out. He just stood there, eyes wide, looking like despite his best efforts the wolf had reached right past all his defenses and jabbed him with his claws.

Judy's ears seemed to thunder with the sudden pounding of her heart beat as Nick continued to gap silently and she hoped desperately, wildly that Nick couldn't hear it. That he wouldn't turn and spot her hiding to the side of the door, because then how would she explain she hadn't purposefully tried to overhear this, that-

her mind seemed to be spinning out of control, completely unresponsive now as her chest began to burn and ache as she held her breath and her heart played on her ribs like Bobby on the drums.

Nick's hackles were up and his tail puffed as his jaw worked silently again.

"Don't overthink it Wilde." Mr. Perry appeared with a sigh and patted the smaller fox on the head, Nick's ears staying splayed awkwardly were the wolf's paw had flattened them. "It's just something to consider. Now, why don't you get going; only a few minutes before the bell rings again."

Nick looked at the clock on the hallway wall, back up at the wolf again, swallowed, then gave a barely perceptible nod and all but fled into the flow of students hurriedly grabbing books from lockers and heading to and fro.

Mr. Perry watched the fox disappear, smiling slightly.

"Doesn't  _think_  he's in love?" the wolf mumbled with a snort and shook his head. "Guess I'm not the only one who was the last mammal to figure out the obvious either… shesh… to be that young again…" He turned, small smile still on his face and closed the door to the empty classroom. The door Judy had been half hidden behind.

Judy froze like a prey caught in a predators sight as Mr. Perry blinked, looking right at her like she'd just pulled a magic trick and appeared out of nowhere.

Judy looked back at the short wolf, immobilized by a sort of all consuming terror that oddly enough had nothing to do with her being prey and the teacher being a predator.

They just stood there for a split second before the wolf raised both his eyebrows.

The small flush that had appeared as she'd eavesdropped exploded, washing over her in a wave that had her ears and cheeks burning in a mortifying embarrassment fueled bonfire and with a silent meep she bolted like he really was a predator after her life. Then kept running all the way to her next class like the wolf had lit her tail on fire too, her thoughts bouncing chaotically between the teacher and Nick and whether he'd tell him she'd been listening and stray thoughts of fairytales and wondering if Nick might be the type of mammal she  _maybe_  possibly  _hypothetically_ could fall for.

* * *

A/N

Special Thanks to  **toannghe1997** for the bit of art in this chapter! It's a super special little awesome piece of art he did way back when specifically for this chapter and which can be viewed on the Ao3 site version of this story! (oh wait this  _is_  Ao3) Even though he made it special and its not on his site, go check out his other great pieces at <https://toannghe1997.deviantart.com/>

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Fox in the Hen House, Cimar and Gus the Bear for help with some bits and pieces of this chapter and also thanks to an actual real world scientist (ehem Eng050599) who did discuss zootopian biology with me and gave me a few buzz words to make this all that much better! *Grin* Hope you enjoyed your little easter egg in the chapter!


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